Thousands of jubilant Carolina Hurricanes fans crammed onto sidewalks, gathered around office building windows, and lined up on floor after floor of at least one parking deck to cheer and wave at the team’s Stanley Cup championship parade on Saturday.

Celebration in Downtown Raleigh

The turnout that packed downtown was enough to leave their coach, Rod Brind’Amour, at a loss. “I’m in shock,” Brind’Amour said. “It doesn’t very often, but I’m just kinda speechless.”
The Hurricanes brought their Stanley Cup celebration to downtown Raleigh on Saturday, with thousands of fans arriving hours early to line the parade route and grab a spot near the rally stage.

The team took the rally stage with captain Jordan Staal hoisting the Stanley Cup skyward before a roaring crowd. The Hurricanes even got some business done, with general manager Eric Tulsky calling reserve forward Nicolas Deslauriers to the podium to sign a two-year $1.75 million deal.

Carly Goodman, 35, of Raleigh, was hard to miss in the front row behind barricades in front of the stage where the parade would end with a rally. She sported a red Sebastian Aho jersey, waved a large Hurricanes flag, and was blinged out with a silver “Stanley Cup” chain necklace.

It was a longer trek for Scott Stiles, 60, and his son, Joey, 24. They weren’t about to miss the celebration even though they live in Concord, a city outside of Charlotte known for its ties to NASCAR and other motorsports.

Original reporting: KSAT Sports (San Antonio) — read the source article.