'This is crazy.' Crowd size for Hurricanes' Stanley Cup parade shatters Raleigh's record.

Josh Shaffer, The News & Observer (Raleigh) on Jun 20, 2026

Published in Hockey

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RALEIGH, N.C. — By anybody’s guess, the Carolina Hurricanes’ victory parade drew a massive number of people jammed elbow-to-elbow for more than a mile, a sea of red so enormous it conjured thoughts of Woodstock.

But the official number wasn’t just eye-popping, it very likely broke Raleigh’s record for most people in one place: 150,000.

That’s the total confirmed by Raleigh police, according to a city spokesperson.

It equals roughly a third of Raleigh’s population.

Last year, Raleigh’s Wide Open Music Festival drew that many fans over three days.

“I did not expect that, for sure,” Canes owner Tom Dundon said of the turnout. “Like, I didn’t know. That’s a lot of people. I was surprised. It’s, also, you know, seeing all the little kids, my guys up there with water guns, and all the little kids in front, thinking about how many people have this connection now and what that’ll mean for the future, is kind of what kind of will hit me.”

As Canes forward Seth Jarvis stood on the rally stage, he sized up the massive crowd in front of him, shook his head and said what everyone in Raleigh was thinking:

“This is crazy.”

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Sports editor Steve Wiseman contributed.