Headline: May 24, 1979

It may not be on the same scale as the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, but a Stanley Cup celebration can contribute to civic pride.

And no other franchise in the National Hockey League can match the Montreal Canadiens for  putting on a victory party.

In 1979, after bumping off the New York Rangers four games-to-one, Montreal held their Cup parade on May23. It was the Habs fourth straight championship.

What amazed most observers was the short period of time it took to travel the parade route. This was accomplished by ditching separate floats and packing players and management under one roof in a sight-seeing bus.

"There were people shouting, people crying, people pulling their hair," stated Montreal forward Mario Tremblay. "It's really unbelievable to see everybody in the street to cheer us. This is what winning the Stanley Cup is all about."