Bruins take their celebration to the streets

BOSTON — Screaming fans dressed in the black and gold of the Boston Bruins smiled, waved and stood on trees and bus shelters as they watched the NHL champions - and the Stanley Cup, of course roll through city streets on a balmy, breezy day.

And the players they adore gave it right back.

Tim Thomas beamed. Zdeno Chara pumped his fists. Patrice Bergeron signaled to the massive crowd to shout even louder.

Then, as the nearly two-hour “rolling rally” celebration of the Bruins’ first title in 39 years neared its end early Saturday afternoon, Andrew Ference raised one finger, then two, then three, orchestrating a familiar chant.

“Let’s Go Bruins!” the fans responded. “Let’s Go Bruins!”

But there’s no need for the Bruins to go any further.

They’ve already arrived.

The long journey began in Vermont in late September with two days of training camp and ended in Vancouver with a 4-0 victory Wednesday night in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals.

In between, the Bruins started the season with two games in Prague against the Phoenix Coyotes losing then winning on a shutout by Thomas and grew into a team determined enough to win three of its four postseason series in seven games and good enough to knock off the Canucks, the NHL’s best team in the regular season.

The Bruins’ trip to their sixth championship got a big boost from their fans, who stuck by them all the way to Saturday’s celebration on a sunny day with temperatures reaching the low 80s. Crowds were so deep on the sidewalks that many fans might not have been able to see the players.

In a 15-minute program outside the TD Garden before the rally, Boston mayor Thomas Menino thanked the Bruins for “a fabulous season.”

Team president Cam Neely, one of the greatest forwards in club history but never a champion, said, “It’s finally our time. How amazing is this?”

Chara, the captain, then told the fans, “We couldn’t have done it without you,” and shared a conversation he had with Neely.

“I promised him when we win a Cup I will hand it to him. So here we go. Come on, Cam,” he said as Neely stepped forward, smiled broadly and took the trophy.

“You guys wanted it. We got it and we want to share it with you today,” said the goalie, one of the few Bruins still sporting a playoff beard. “Let’s have some fun.”