The Pittsburgh Professionals also called the Pittsburgh Pros were a professional ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 team that participated in the International Professional Hockey League

International Professional Hockey League

The International Professional Hockey League was the first fully professional ice hockey league, operating from 1904 to 1907. It was formed by Jack 'Doc' Gibson, a dentist who played hockey throughout Ontario before settling in Houghton, Michigan. The IPHL was a five team circuit which included...

 (IPHL) from 1904 until 1907. The team was based in the Duquesne Gardens

Duquesne Gardens

Duquesne Gardens was the main sports arena located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA during the first half of the 20th century. It opened 3 years after a fire destroyed the city's prior sports arena, the Schenley Park Casino, in 1896. The arena was the first hockey rink to use glass above the dasher...

 and was the first inter-city professional hockey team in the city of Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...

. The Pros' line-ups included several important early professional hockey players, the most notable being Hod Stuart

Hod Stuart

William Hodgson "Hod" Stuart was a Canadian professional ice hockey cover-point who played nine seasons for several teams in different leagues. He also played briefly for the Ottawa Rough Riders football team...

, a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame

Hockey Hall of Fame

The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...

.

Formation

The club was made up of players from the various teams of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League

Western Pennsylvania Hockey League

The Western Pennsylvania Hockey League , was a semi-professional ice hockey league from the early 1900s. Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the league was the pre-eminent ice hockey league at the time in the United States...

 (WPHL), which dissolved after the 1904 season

1904 WPHL season

-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 414*The Keystones withdrew from the league on January 17, 1904.-References:...

. The Pros included the very players from the WPHL so that Pittsburgh could compete in the league. The team joined the Portage Lakes Hockey Club

Portage Lakes Hockey Club

The Portage Lakes Hockey Club was one of the first professional ice hockey clubs. Based in Houghton, Michigan, the club played at the Amphidrome from 1904 until 1906...

, Calumet Miners, Michigan Soo Indians and Canadian Soo as members of the five-team league. At a November 5, 1904 meeting, the representatives of the Canadian Soo suggested a revenue sharing

Revenue sharing

Revenue sharing has multiple, related meanings depending on context.In business, revenue sharing refers to the sharing of profits and losses among different groups. One form shares between the general partner and limited partners in a limited partnership...

 plan that would divide gate receipts in a 60–40 home-visitor split. This revenue sharing plan would make the long journey to Pittsburgh possible, considering the Pros played at the 5,000 seat capacity Duquesne Gardens.

Season-by-season

The Pros did not fare well in its first season. However, during the 1905–06 season they were one of three teams vying with Portage Lakes and Michigan Soo Indians for first place. The Pros would finish the season in third place. A year later, Pittsburgh once again came in third place furing the 1906-07 season, with Tommy Smith, Jimmy Gardner, Horace Gaul

Horace Gaul

Horace Joseph Gaul was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who played from 1904 until 1913 most notably with the Pittsburgh Professionals, Haileybury Comets, Ottawa Senators and Toronto Tecumsehs.-Playing career:...

 and goalie Jack Winchester

Jack Winchester

Jack Winchester was a professional ice hockey player who played 93 games in various professional and amateur leagues, including the National Hockey Association and International Professional Hockey League. Amongst the teams he for played with were the Montreal Shamrocks and the Pittsburgh...

 joining Lorne Campbell

Lorne Campbell

Lorne Campbell was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who played 140 games in various professional leagues, including the National Hockey Association and International Professional Hockey League . Amongst the teams he played for were the Cobalt Silver Kings.-Playing career:Campbell first...

 in the line-up. Campbell and Smith finished ahead of Hall-Of-Famers Didier Pitre

Didier Pitre

Joseph George Didier "Cannonball" Pitre was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward. He was nicked named "Cannonball". One of the first players to join the Montreal Canadiens, Pitre's French-Canadian heritage helped give his line-mates the nickname the Flying Frenchmen, brought upon by his...

, Newsy Lalonde

Newsy Lalonde

Édouard Cyrille "Newsy" Lalonde was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward in the National Hockey League and a professional lacrosse player, regarded as one of hockey's and lacrosse's greatest players of the first half of the 20th century and one of sport's most colourful characters...

 and Bruce Stuart

Bruce Stuart

Bruce Stuart was a Canadian amateur and professional ice hockey forward who played for the Quebec Bulldogs, Ottawa Senators and Montreal Wanderers from 1899 to 1911...

 in scoring.

Year	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts	Ave	Finish
1904-05	24	8	15	1	82	144	17	.354	4th Place
1905-06	24	15	9	0	121	84	30	.625	3rd Place
1906-07	25	12	12	1	94	82	25	.500	3rd Place

Demise

The team and the IPHL existed until after the 1906-07 season. By that time professional hockey leagues were now popping up all over Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 and most of the players returned there for a better paycheck, so the IHL folded. It was then decided to reconstitute the WPHL for the 1908

1908 WPHL season

-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 415* Games that resulted in a tie were replayed and are not reflected in total points-Exhibition:The Bankers played a "World's Series" with the Montreal Wanderers. The Wanderers won the series two games to one....

 and 1909 seasons

1909 WPHL season

-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 415* The Lyceum discontinued play on December 23, 1908.-References:...

, since there were no artificial ice rinks in Canada until 1911.

Notable players

• Hod Stuart
  Hod Stuart
  William Hodgson "Hod" Stuart was a Canadian professional ice hockey cover-point who played nine seasons for several teams in different leagues. He also played briefly for the Ottawa Rough Riders football team...