List of Stanley Cup challenge games

None
During the period from 1893 to 1914, the Stanley Cup was a "challenge trophy"; the champions held the Cup until they lost their league title to another club, or a champion from another league issued a formal challenge and subsequently defeated them in a special game or series. The competitive format of each challenge was determined by negotiation between the two clubs, and the contesting clubs did indeed make several arrangements during this 22 year period. Before 1912, challenges could take place at any time, given the appropriate rink conditions, and it was common for teams to defend the Cup numerous times during the year. In 1912, the Cup's trustees declared that the Cup was only to be defended at the end of the champion team's regular season. Also during this era, all of the leagues that played for the trophy had no annual formal playoff system to decide their own respective championships; whoever finished in first place after the regular season won the league title. Thus, a few league championship games or series were held just to break first place ties and determine who would keep the Cup. These league title games have historically been listed along with the regular inter league Cup challenges.

Lord Stanley of Preston introduced the Stanley Cup in 1892 and it was first awarded at the end of winter 1893 to the league champion Montreal Hockey Club (Montreal HC). The same club won a playoff at the end of the 1894 season, which is considered the first "Stanley Cup challenge" although four clubs were involved in the process and three teams played games. Montreal HC lost the Cup by losing its league in 1895, decided early in March. The challenge system, as opposed to the Challenge Era, probably truly began sometime thereafter.

The Ottawa HC joined the FAHL for the 1904–1905 season.

The 1912–13 NHA season ended with Quebec Bulldogs repeating as league champions. The Bulldogs then played a two game total goals Cup challenge series versus the Sydney Millionaires of the Maritime Professional Hockey League (MPHL), with Quebec winning 20 goals to 5. Joe Malone scored 9 goals as he led the Bulldogs to a 14–3 win in the first game. Quebec then won the second by a score of 6–2, with Joe Hall earning a hat trick. Date Winning Team Score Losing Team LocationMarch 8, 1913Quebec Bulldogs14–3Sydney MillionairesQuebec Skating RinkMarch 10, 1913Quebec Bulldogs6–2Sydney MillionairesQuebec wins total goals series 20 goals to 5. Later in the month, the Victoria Aristocrats of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) challenged Quebec. However, the Bulldogs refused to put the Cup on the line, so the two teams played a best of three exhibition series instead. In the first series ever between the champions of the two leagues, all of the games were played in Victoria, while the differing rules of the NHA and PCHA alternated between each contest. A major rule difference was the PCHA had seven man rules while the NHA had six. The first game was played under PCHA rules and the Aristocrats recorded a 7–5 victory. Under NHA rules in the second game, Quebec won 6–3. But in the third game, under seven man hockey, Victoria won the exhibition series with a 6–1 victory.