A parade down the Canyon of Heroes

It was ticker-tape parade day for the New York Rangers 26 years ago

There have been 206 ticker-tape parades in New York City’s history, but only one featured a hockey team.  The 1994 parade was the finishing touch on a whirlwind week in New York that started with the Blueshirts 3-2 seventh game triumph to win their first Stanley Cup since 1940.

1.5 million fans lined the parade route on lower Broadway on a steamy 89 degree day.  20 tons of paper littered the Canyon of Heroes after the parade passed through.

For players who were accustomed to seeing just over 18,000 fans at Madison Square Garden over a million people was a stunning sight.  In an interview with  nhl.com 15 years after the parade,  Adam Graves recalled  “going from block to block and seeing how deep and how many Rangers fans were there. The energy, the excitement and the ticker-tape. It was overwhelming. It’s an experience that is really hard to describe. A unique and unbelievably powerful experience.”

The parade ended with a ceremony in City Hall Plaza where the players were presented with keys to the City by Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a rabid Rangers fan.  The Stanley Cup has been in some pretty unique locations, but nothing could rival this.

Previous Cup celebrations

The Rangers had won three Stanley Cup before, in 1928, 1933 and 1940.   The 1994 triumph was the first time the team had won the championship on home ice.   In 1928 the Blueshirts had to play all five games in the Montreal Forum, beating the Maroons three games to two.  Little is known how the team celebrated the win.

In 1933, they team played the first game at Madison Square Garden, but played the next three games at Maple Leaf Gardens, ousted by the circus.  They still won that series in four games, 3-1.

The last ticker-tape parade before that win was for Amelia Earhart after her transatlantic flight in 1932, but hockey teams didn’t rate as highly as hero pilots.  According to author Eric Whitehead in his book, “The Patrick – Hockey’s Royal Family” the team celebrated with a sumptuous dinner at the Astor Hotel in Times Square.

In 1940, the circus was the villain again as they played the first two games of the six game series at Madison Square Garden, but then had to go on the road for next four games, beating the Maple Leafs 4-2.

The Rangers’ celebration of that win has become par of the team’s folklore and may have accounted for the 54 year Cup drought.  As the team had paid off the mortgage on Madison Square Garden at the time they won the Cup, the team lit the mortgage on fire while it was in the Cup.   It cause some damage to the trophy and the tale is that the hockey gods put a curse on the team, accounting for the years of futility.

Parade memories

We asked for memories of the parade from our Blue Line Station readers and contributors..

Here are the memories of Craig Zeichner,  Section 304, Row H, Seat 7 1994 Stanley Cup Champion New York Rangers.

Craig was not only at the parade, but he was lucky enough to be at Game Seven:

“As I was floating on Cloud Nine after leaving the Garden on the night of Cup win, I was already making my plans for the victory parade.

I was up early the day of the parade and while having my coffee switched on the television. I saw that people were already showing up at the parade site. So, at around 7:30 AM, I zipped out the door and made my way downtown. I staked out a spot directly behind a police barrier and waited. I think it was at Broadway and Rector Streets.  After a while more and more people gathered and some of us struck up a “Let’s Go Rangers” cheer. This was hours before the parade even started.

Eventually, a woman and her young son arrived and were standing directly behind me. The boy—around 10 years old or so—saw I was wearing a Rangers Stanley Cup championship t-shirt and wanted to know if I was at the game. I told him yes and he peppered me with questions.  Somehow, I had become something of a celebrity to this kid. He couldn’t see, so I let him stand in front of me.

We knew the parade started because we could hear the NYPD band bagpipes echoing off the buildings. I remember they played the old Irish tune “The Minstrel Boy.” Then the floats with players on them started to roll by and there they were: Richter, Messier, Graves—I think Kevin Lowe was on the float too. As the parade continued, we got to see all the players.

People were hanging outside of windows and paper was pouring down in waves. I have never been in a place where such an infectious feeling of joy and love swept over everyone. If you were in NYC at that time, you’ll remember how that feeling continued all summer.   At the end of the parade the sheer amount of paper and the brightness of the sky—it was a splendid weather day—made you feel snow blind.

It was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced and hope that I get another chance soon. I can’t wait to snap some parade photos of Kreider, Zibanejad, Panerin, Fox and the gang.”

Craig Zeichner – Section 304, Row H, Seat 7 1994 Stanley Cup Champion New York Rangers

From Scott Esposito, a prolific contributor to Blue Line Station: ;

“I was 23 and remember holding my brother, who was 15 and probably weighed 125 pounds, on my shoulders so he could see over the wall of people in front of us. I did this for nearly two hours, despite the high heat and humidity, as well as the fact I couldn’t bench press 100. Adrenaline gave me the strength to hold up my brother for so long and participate in the seemingly endless “Let’s Go Rangers, F–k Vancouver!” chants.”

In a curious twist, as memorable as the ticker-tape parade was, it was overshadowed by another news event later that day.  June 17 was the day of O.J. Simpson’s infamous 60 mile car chase through the freeways of Los Angeles.   100 million people tuned in to watch the live coverage of one of the strangest events in our memory.   The Simpson story knocked the Blueshirts off the front page, but for Rangers fans, the celebration in New York will always be the lead story that day.