Cecil Hart coached the Canadiens for two separate stretches during hockey's formative era, guiding the club to Stanley Cup championships in 1930 and 1931 — the first coach in team history to win back-to-back titles. He was fired after the 1931–32 season following a dispute with team owner Léo Dandurand, despite the club having finished in first place. When new ownership took over in 1936, Hart agreed to return only on the condition that legendary star Howie Morenz — by then aging and out of favor — be reacquired; management complied, and Hart's rebuilt Canadiens finished first in 1936–37, a season overshadowed by Morenz's death from a leg injury suffered on Canadiens ice. Hart resigned as coach and general manager in 1939 as the team slid toward the bottom of the standings. His father, David Hart, donated the trophy in 1923 that would become the NHL's Hart Memorial Trophy, though Cecil himself was never inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.