U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame - Eveleth, Minnesota - Hockey Museum

The U.S Hockey Hall of Fame is a museum dedicated to American ice hockey situated at Hat Trick Avenue in Eveleth, Minnesota. It is approximately a three and a half hour drive from Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport via Interstate 35S. The hours of opening between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day are 9am to 5pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 3pm Sunday, while the rest of the year it opens 12 noon to 5pm Friday, 9am to 5pm Saturday and 10am to 3pm on Sunday.

The Hall of Fame was founded in 1968 but relocated five years later to its present site in Eveleth, which has very rich ice hockey traditions and is often referred to as "the capital of American hockey''. The Hall of Fame seeks to honor and recognize the achievements of the best coaches, players, referees and administrators involved in American ice hockey. Here visitors can view thrilling game action, exhibits, displays, videos, theater and memorabilia to highlight these great achievements in the game over the years.

By the end of 2009 there had been 136 inductees in the Hall of Fame since it began including two Olympic teams. The first 30 years saw only individuals added to the roster of outstanding achievers, but in 2003 the gold medal winning 1980 Olympic team was inducted after their "miracle on ice'' victory over the Soviet Union. In 2009 the women's team of 1998 was added too for their gold medal winning performance against Canada, which was the first time ladies ice hockey had been included in the Olympics.

Visitors will see the list of `enshrinees' with details about their contribution to American ice hockey as part of the many exhibits on show here. The hall is only open to natives of the United States with inductees selected by a 12 man committee made up of Hall of Fame members and hockey officials. Players must have been retired for at least five years to be eligible, while coaches only qualify if they coached teams made up predominantly of U.S players.

There are numerous pieces of memorabilia that help to recount the U.S Olympic legacy with many photographs dating back to the 1920s when the Winter Olympics began. For some people, the highlight of the museum is the video tape showing the famous 1980 victory over the Soviet Union in the Olympics. Other highlighted exhibits include the Olympic Display, the Mighty Duck Scoreboard, the Gallery of Hockey Art, and several displays of historic hockey artifacts.

While it is very much a celebration of American ice hockey, there is an inevitable slant towards the contribution to the game from Minnesota, where many great players have come from. Visitors coming from further afield may wish to stay overnight or longer and there are various places providing accommodation nearby. Days Inn is also located in Hat Trick Avenue, just 300 meters from the museum and Super 8 is a similar distance away in Industrial Park Drive.