The HHOF was one of the "must-see" items on my trip itinerary when I visited Toronto and I am pleased to say that it did not disappoint. I am a HUGE hockey fan (my friend and I were actually in Toronto to watch the world junior hockey tournament) and I am also a librarian so the HHOF appealed to both of these sensibilities.
I'm one of those people who needs to read everything in a display so I'm sure that the nearly three hours my friend and I spent here is more than most people take. This is the kind of museum where you can either breeze through all the exhibits or you can take your time and absorb every detail. It's totally up to you.
The first room you enter holds feature exhibits of some of the more famous and influential inductees. There are also exhibits featuring facts and memorabilia for each of the NHL teams (current and former), war veterans, and minor league teams. While most of the the HHOF focuses on the NHL, there is also a substantial section on international hockey (particularly the IIHF) as well.
The interactive exhibits were really exciting to watch. You had a choice to play as a shooter or as a goalie up against a computer simulation. It was much harder than it looked! The lines weren't particularly bad. We only waited about 20 minutes and this was on a Sunday afternoon. There were also some trivia and Nintendo Wii game included in the price of admission. The only thing that cost extra was a game of old-school table hockey but I was glad to give up a loonie to have a go at it.
I think my personal favourite part of the museum was the Montreal Canadiens mock-dressing room. It was neat getting to see the progression of jerseys and equipment over the year. However, the obvious highlight for most people is the trophy room which houses replicas of all the NHL awards given out every year, the most famous of which is the Stanley Cup. You are able to take your own photos or for a small fee a professional photographer can do the job for you.
I had a great time here and was not disappointed. The HHOF is an obvious must-see for hockey fans and history buffs alike.