The Toronto Hockey Hall of Fame is a playground of hockey delight for those who love the sport. Ice hockey fanatics will find everything here from interactive games to NHL (National Hockey League) memorabilia. Even if you aren’t a hard-core ice hockey fan, you’ll have fun getting to know this Canadian-loved sport at the Hockey Hall of Fame Toronto.
The original NHL Hockey Hall of Fame opened on August 26th, 1961 on the Exhibition Place grounds. Bobby Hewitson was the first Curator of the Hall of fame, followed by Maurice “Lefty” Reid, after Hewitson retired. The combined vision of these two men to collect, document, and preserve everything to do with hockey was what inspired the Hall of Fame in the beginning, and continues to drive Hall of Fame Curators today.
In 1992 the Toronto Hockey Hall of Fame was relocated to a former Bank of Montreal location in downtown Toronto. Under the leadership of former NHL referee Ian “Scotty” Morrison, the Hockey Hall of Fame Toronto grew in popularity and reputation. The game of hockey at the same time was finding new audiences around the world, creating more interest in what the Hall of Fame was offering. Today the NHL Hockey Hall of Fame is an extremely popular attraction for Toronto visitors.
So what can you do and see at the Toronto Hockey Hall
of Fame? Ice Hockey memorabilia and artifacts are
what the Hall of Fame is famous for. You can see
the original Stanley Cup donated by Lord Stanley in 1893,
walk through a replica of the Montreal Canadians’
locker room, and see Newsy Lalonde’s ice skates
or Max Bentley’s hockey stick. There are also
lots of fun interactive displays and games to try out.
You can practice your shooting skills by shooting at targets,
or see what it feel like to be a goalie by putting on
goalie gear and trying handle the sponge pucks being pummeled
your way.
The newly opened Collector’s Corner is one of the latest additions to the NHL Hockey Hall of Fame. This “corner” is actually 400 square feet of all things hockey from cards, coins, food, tickets, stamps, figurines, and more. If you are a hockey collector, you will appreciate this huge collection, just don’t feel too bad when you see all of the items that you once owned but have long-since discarded!
Another new addition to the Hockey Hall of Fame Toronto was unveiled on March 11, 2006. This new 6,000 square foot area called the “NHL ZONE” exhibits NHL legends, retro NHL, NHL milestones and Stanley Cup Dynasties. NHL ZONE cost around $20 million CAN to construct.
