Denver cop mistakes Avalanche’s Bowen Byram for fan running into parade

It wouldn’t be a championship parade without a player being mistaken as a fan. 

The Colorado Avalanche celebrated their Stanley Cup victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning with a raucous parade on Thursday, but festivities were briefly put on hold for defenseman Bowen Byram.

As the truck float rolled through the packed streets of Colorado, Byram momentarily stepped off to greet fans on the sidelines. After signing several autographs and taking pictures with supporters, the 21-year-old attempted to rejoin his teammates — only to be stopped by an unaware police officer. 

Confusing Byram for a fan, the officer tried to coax the star defenseman behind the railing where other fans were standing en masse. However, he soon after realized his mistake, allowing the player and his two beers in hand back onto the float.

“The officer (parade route defenseman) thought a fan had come over the boards and into his defensive zone,” Denver Police joked on Twitter. “It was quickly determined he was a player and not offside.”

Byram’s run-in wasn’t the only miscommunication he suffered during the Stanley Cup parade. During the Avalanche’s grand celebration at Civic Center Park, the blueliner accidentally took the stage after his fellow teammate Erik Johnson’s name was called. Luckily for Byram, it sounds as though he won’t be recalling these slipups. 

“The last four days, I don’t remember much,” Byram told media at Civic Center Park, according to The Athletic.

Byram seems to be celebrating hard following his team’s championship win. After missing nearly three months of the season because of injury, he rejoined the Avalanche on April 5, going on to record eight points in the postseason — most notably a cross-ice assist on the first goal of Sunday’s final contest.