Avalanche rookie Bo Byram, 19, set to tie his father in NHL games played – The Denver Post

Avalanche rookie defenseman Bo Byram, 19, will play in his fifth career NHL game Thursday against San Jose at Ball Arena — tying his father for games played in the league.

Shawn Byram, 52, was a left wing who played five NHL games in the early 1990s for the New York Islanders (four) and the Chicago Blackhawks (one). He played 15 seasons professionally but mostly in the minor leagues or in Europe.

“I was on the phone with him and I was like, ‘Looks like I’ll be tying your record,’ and he got a good laugh out of it,” Bo said pregame of a conversation he had with his father on Wednesday. “It’s definitely nice having him around. It’s a lot of fun and he’s a great resource for me.”

Bo Byram, the first defenseman selected in the 2019 draft (fourth overall), can play six NHL games this year until the first year of his entry-level contract kicks in. The Avalanche can send Byram back to his junior team before his seventh game or pledge to keep him on the roster all season. It appears Colorado will do the latter, given how he has improved in each of his first four games and his team-high 21:14 of ice time in Tuesday’s 7-3 win over the Sharks.

“I’m taking steps every game. It’s just about learning from everything,” Byram said. “You got to make sure you’re a sponge and make sure you’re paying attention to detail to stay in the lineup.”

Byram will play against a guy who is 22 years older than him Thursday. San Jose’s Patrick Marleau, 41, is set to play in his 1,731st NHL game to tie Ron Francis for fourth all-time.

“He’s a big-name guy that’s been around the league forever,” Byram said of Marleau. “Whenever you play against guys like that, you’re in a bit of awe. Pretty cool to be able to say in the future that I got to play against him.”

Gordie Howe holds the record for all-time games played with 1,767. Mark Messier is second (1,756) followed by Jaromir Jagr (1,733)

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