The Loop was a sea of red this morning. Jubilant fans lined the sidewalk along Washington Street, amid the canyon of skyscrapers underneath a bright blue summer sky. Some of them had been there for hours, the unlucky ones who couldn’t find a spot along the barricades staked out higher ground. It wasn’t hard to find in Daley Plaza. Fans climbed up on flower beds, benches, and of course, the Picasso.
At around 10:45 this morning, an anticipatory buzz grew into full-throated screaming as the first of several double-decker buses zoomed by (they must’ve been doing 25 MPH.) At the head of the bus stood Owner Rocky Wirtz, flanked by his front office staff including President John McDonough. At the rear – Captain Jonathan Toews carried Lord Stanley’s Cup – then hoisted it over his shoulder causing the crowd to erupt into even louder cheers.
Within seconds, it was over. The last of the double-decker buses sped off – trailed almost immediately by City Street Sweeping vehicles (they drew a well-deserved, warm-hearted cheer from the crowd as well, deservedly so.)
The caravan began at Des Plaines and Washington, shot straight through the Loop, and snaked its way onto Columbus Drive in Grant Park, finally spilling off into Hutchinson Field. There were only two ways into the park – at Jackson/Michigan and Congress/Michigan. Police stood at each gate, patting fans and searching bags. Muted TV screens handled the overflow crowds along Balbo, Columbus, and at Buckingham Fountain.
Those lucky enough to get into Hutchinson Field, designed to hold about 75-100,000 for this kind of event, were treated to season highlights on a video board before Mayor Rahm Emanuel came out to congratulate the team. Wirtz then took the mic, saying he had only 1 minute and 17 seconds to address the fans, because that’s how long it took the Hawks to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in the soon-to-be legendary decisive Game 6 Finals matchup against the Boston Bruins.
Everyone felt the love today – with one notable exception. Gov. Pat Quinn, dressed in a red polo, was introduced and tried to address the crowd over a sustained chorus of boos (he loves to refer to the standing boo-vations he would get from lawmakers back in his gadfly days. I’m guessing he won’t reflect as fondly on this reception.)
How did Mayor Emanuel manage to escape the booing? Simple. Nobody introduced him, and I doubt 90 percent of the crowd knew who it was whooping and hollering up on stage.
But here’s the most obvious point of the day. Not one soul was there to see politicians. Joel Quenneville, Patrick Sharp, fan-favorite Patrick Kane, and goalie extraordinaire Corey Crawford had far better luck revving up the sun-soaked revelers. In fact, Crawford may have drawn the loudest applause of the rally for momentarily turning off the speech filter in his mind and shouting out something to the effect of, “we worked our (bleeping)( male gonads) off for you guys.” You get the picture.
The crowd also enjoyed a tender symbolic moment when Kane, the Conn Smythe Trophy winner, handed over a Blackhawks WWE belt to Crawford and said, “Nobody deserves to wear this more.”
And then, following the obligatory Chelsea Dagger sing-a-long, or grunt-a-long, or whatever it is, the crowd dispersed peacefully, officials began the cleanup, and the city slowly came down to earth.
Watch the sights and sounds in the following web extra video:
