The Hockey Hall of Fame. It’s been one of the highlights of this trip so far and I’ve done a variety of things to get to today, the second-to-last day before I head back to sunny So Cal. There are four things I want to mention from the HOFF.
Number #1: I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the Gold Medal, game-winning puck from the 2010 Vancouver Olympics was going to be on display. And that you could touch it! There weren’t too many people since I was there two hours before closing so I didn’t have to wait to take a picture of anything, which was fantastic. When I walked into the area of the puck there was a gigantic screen showing highlights of the game including the medal ceremony. Drew Doughty? You bet I saw him get the medal placed around his neck.
So the puck. There was a walkway put together that was roped off with the puck nicely on display at the end of the carpet that was laid out. The plastic holder it was in had a few holes drilled into the side so that you could technically touch the puck, which I thought was awesomely hilarious. I went up, took some pictures, and all that good stuff. Kudos to the HHOF for this room.
Number #2: The stick, gloves, helmet, puck and net from Wayne Gretzky’s 802nd goal all in one display. Included were pucks stacked up to show the number 802 and the letter to the President of the Hockey Division at the time from the President of the Great Western Forum. Date of the letter: May 2, 1994.
Number #3: The “Our Game” statue outside of the HHOF. I now have a bunch of pictures where everyone else has taken their picture with it. I was a total tourist in that sense.
Number #4: The Stanley Cup. The best trophy in sports on display to a room full of polite Canadians. Everyone was so GD nice about waiting to take their picture with the Cup. One thing I had no idea about was the actual bank vault that now houses the original Cup. Absolute class with the way it was put together. I don’t know what to else to say that everyone hasn’t already said other than I was almost silent the entire time I was in that room.
The Hall was just perfect in every way. Wherever I looked brought something new in front of my eyes and of course I hit up the gift shop to show my support. Great ending to that day.