DENVER • Two words: Light rail. Skip the parking nightmare. Offer your seat to a nice lady, and high-five absolutely everybody.

And stake out a spot. That’s the key here. Make it your family’s spot for this Stanley Cup parade and the next two or three, too.

Tradition is the way to go, because the Avalanche Stanley Cup parade through downtown Thursday is just the beginning. It’s the first of a few, so plan accordingly. Next year, your kids can say, “We always stand at 17th and Arapahoe when Gabe comes by. It’s good luck.” Or set up shop on Champa Street and 17th Avenue for the photo op by the Colorado National Bank building. Ideal Instagram lighting.

Gabriel Landeskog is 29. Nathan MacKinnon 26, Mikko Rantanen 25, Cale Makar an old-soul 23, and architect Joe Sakic was never OK with winning just one. Besides, the Avs own three Cups since arriving in Denver. Only one team since then has more: the Red Wings, with four.

Think Sakic is trying to lose to the Red Wings? Plus, Landy’s the natural successor as GM.

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The Avs aren’t going away anytime soon, and the parade that begins at Union Station at 10 a.m. is just the start of something special.

Here was a headline in Wednesday’s New York Post: “2023 Stanley Cup odds: The Avalanche are in a class of their own.” The Avs are plus-400 to win it all again next year. Those are better odds than they had this season, and this season, they were the heaviest favorite since the Wings in 2002.

Stake out your spot, and make it a tradition. As a big parade guy, I walked the parade route Tuesday to scope out the best locations for the lawn chair you’re not supposed to bring. The steps of the KPGM building at 17th and Lawrence offer an elevated perch. The grassy knoll at 17th and Arapahoe screams party. 9News ace weatherman Chris Bianchi predicts Colorado sunshine in the morning, so the shade at Curtis and 17th is worth a peek. Rain hits around 1 p.m., hopefully.

“Go do those keg stands inside after the parade,” Bianchi says.

Veterans of the 1998 and ’99 Broncos and 1996 and 2001 Avs (missed that one, dang it) parades will go straight to Civic Center Park. The rally there begins at 9 a.m. with music (“All the … small things …” on loop), live video of the parade and season highlights, like Arrturi Lehkonen’s Cup-clinching goal and everything MacKinnon, who would’ve gotten my Conn Smythe vote.

The goal of the playoffs remains Nazem Kadri’s “Hidden Puck” trick. Play that on loop, too.

Civic Center Park was closed for a while due to drug use and people poop. It’s back open now.

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Speaking of, Mayor Michael Hancock is one of the VIPs at the rally. Same for Stan and Josh Kroenke, the reigning Stanley Cup and Super Bowl champs. Between Ball Arena and Colorado’s unusually long COVID restrictions, fan ban and the Altitude TV spat with Comcast, the people in charge made it hard as heck to watch the best Avalanche team in team history. The city expects 200,000 folks to attend the parade, and you could’ve doubled that without all the nonsense. This parade’s for Avs fans as much as it is the Avs.

There will also be participants to cheer, including free agents like Kadri, Lehkonen, Valeri Nichushkin and Darcy Kuemper. Then there’s Andre Burakovsky, who played through a broken ankle and broken thumb. Talk about tough. MLB guys would load maintenance for a month.

What a team this was, and the parade will be the final time this Avalanche team is whole.

Couple things to remember, rules and regulations. Denver loves rules and regulations. If you have a court date, Denver courts will still be open. Enter the City and County building through the south doors and pray the judge had the Avs plus-800. Also, no weed or skateboards. Think of the parade like prom. If you couldn’t bring it to prom, it’s a no-go for the parade.

And stake out your spot for now and for later. Stanley Cups come in bunches. Since the Avs moved here, the Lightning and Penguins went back to back, the Wings won three in six years, the Devils two in four, the Hawks three in six. The Avs’ first Cup arrived when Peter Forsberg was 22, Adam Foote 24, Sakic 26, Claude Lemieux 30. This is just the beginning, again.

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Bring water, random high-fives and hugs, and stake out your spot — for now and the next one.

2023 Stanley Cup odds, courtesy BetMGM: 

Avalanche +400

Maple Leafs +850

Lightning +900

Panthers +1000

Hurricanes +1200

Golden Knights +1400

Oilers +1600

Flames +1800

Wild +1800

Rangers +2000

Penguins +2000

Blues +2200

Bruins +2500

Islanders +3000

Capitals +3500

Stars +4000

Kings +4000

Red Wings +5000

Predators +5000

Canucks +5000

Sabres +6600

Flyers +6600

Jets +6600

Ducks +8000

Devils +8000

Senators +8000

Blackhawks +10000

Blue Jackets +10000

Sharks +10000

Kraken +12500

Canadiens +15000

Coyotes +50000