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Chicago Blackhawks Parade Thursday In Loop, Rally At Soldier Field

UPDATE: Parade Route Changed

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Fans can celebrate the 2015 Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks beginning at 10 a.m. Thursday with a parade followed by a rally at Soldier Field.

"The City of Chicago is so proud of the Blackhawks, which is why we are going to throw them a celebration that only Chicago can throw – a celebration worthy of a hockey dynasty," Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in a statement.

The parade route will run along Monroe Street, beginning at Jefferson Street all the way to Michigan Avenue. (The city later expanded the route, UPDATE:click here.)

Previous parades ran down Washington Street, but construction moved the route a few blocks to the south to Monroe.

In 2010, the rally was held at Michigan Avenue and the Chicago River. In 2013, the rally was held at Hutchinson Field in Grant Park. Heavy rains Monday made it too difficult to hold a rally in Grant Park this year.

The rally after the parade at Soldier Field will be a free, ticketed event. The free tickets will be available starting Wednesday at noon on Ticketmaster. There's a limit of four tickets per person.

Soldier Field will open to ticket holders at 8 a.m., and the parking lots will open at 5 a.m. The rally is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.

You can watch the parade and rally live on CBS 2, with coverage beginning at 9 a.m. Thursday.

Chicago police say they'll be paying special attention to security along the parade route down Monroe Street.

"We'll have a significant undercover presence in the crowd watching for things that we have to worry about," Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy said. "We'll have a lot of bomb-sniffing dogs around."

There'll also be security at Soldier Field, similar to a Bears game where no backpacks will be allowed.

Chicago clinched its third Stanley Cup in six seasons when it was a 2-0 winner against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 6 on Monday night at the United Center.

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