Hundreds of thousands of fans lined Constitution Avenue and filled the National Mall on Tuesday to celebrate the Washington Capitals鈥 first Stanley Cup championship.
The parade and rally midway between the U.S. Capitol and Washington Monument commemorated the first D.C. title in the major four professional sports since the Redskins in 1992 and the first Cup in the Capitals鈥 44-year history.
Fans clad in red were 20 deep on either side of Constitution chanting 鈥淟et鈥檚 Go Caps!鈥 as more than three dozen buses and convertibles made the trip along the mile-long route.
Conn Smythe Trophy-winning Alex Ovechkin, alternate captains Nicklas Backstrom and Brooks Orpik, owner Ted Leonsis and team president Dick Patrick took up the most prominent place in the parade on the last bus with the Stanley Cup. Chants of 鈥淥vi! Ovi!鈥 alternated with pleas of 鈥淩aise the Cup!鈥 which Ovechkin, Backstrom and Orpik did for hours while sipping from beer bottles.
At the rally, winger T.J. Oshie led fans to chant, 鈥渂ack-to-back,鈥 and Ovechkin and his teammates sang Queen鈥檚 鈥淲e Are The Champions鈥 on stage to wrap up one of the biggest sports celebrations in the history of the nation鈥檚 capital.
Stephen Whyno, The Associated Press
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