The Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) is a national organization that oversees amateur hockey play in Canada. It was established in 1908 and is responsible for the prestigious Allan Cup, which is the amateur hockey championship trophy. The CAHA is made up of 10 junior A hockey leagues, representing 131 teams and more than 2,900 players. Every year, these players compete for the Royal Bank Cup Junior A National Championship and are selected to represent Canada in the World Junior A Challenge and the annual CJHL prospect game.The CAHA was founded on December 4, 1914 at the Château Laurier Hotel in Ottawa.
It was created to replace the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (AHAC), which was established on December 8, 1886 and existed until 1898.The AHAC had six teams: Montreal HC, Montreal Shamrocks, Montreal Victories, Ottawa HC, Quebec HC and Ottawa HC (with the best record). In 1893, the first year since 1888 in which the AHAC played under a system of games, the Montreal Hockey Club lost its first game against the Ottawa Hockey Club but won the next seven on its way to the championship. That summer, the Quebec Provincial Youth Hockey League was created and renamed the Quebec AAA Junior Hockey League in 1997.The CAHA negotiated an agreement with the National Hockey League (NHL) in 1940 that recognized youth hockey in Canada as a source of talent for the NHL and provided financial compensation for the development of amateur players who signed professional contracts. Canadian high-performance hockey changed forever with the introduction of the Excellence Program in 1981, which brings together Canada's best young players in the under-17, under-20 and under-20 categories.
In 1993, Southern Ontario returned with two leagues: the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League A and the Metro Junior A Hockey League. In 2002, Canadian hockey set a new record when both men's and women's teams won gold at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and women won consecutive gold medals four years later in Turin.
