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Travis Boyd calls NHL debut ‘a dream come true’

By Ian Oland

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December 6, 2017 3:47 pm

Tuesday night, nearly 24 hours removed from his NHL debut, Capitals 2011 sixth-round pick Travis Boyd thanked friends and family on Twitter for their support during his long journey to the NHL.

Boyd had a rather inconspicuous game against the San Jose Sharks, playing the least amount of minutes on the Capitals (9:10) and recording only one shot on goal. But it remained a huge accomplishment nonetheless. According to TSN, sixth-round picks have approximately a 15% chance of becoming an NHL player. Boyd has spent parts of four seasons in AHL Hershey waiting for the call.

The Capitals pulled out all the stops for Boyd. Like Nathan Walker and countless other young players before him, Boyd got the rookie treatment from his teammates. Capitals players tricked Boyd into skating around the ice solo before the rest of the team came out for warmups.

Boyd was also asked to do the team’s first intermission interview with NBC Sports Washington’s Al Koken.

Boyd’s parents, Brian and Jody, brother, girlfriend Kelsey, daughter Hayden, and other family members were all in attendance for the game.

Photo: @Tboyd93

With TJ Oshie out, Boyd will play again Wednesday night against the Chicago Blackhawks on national TV.

Boyd had played in 176 straight games for the Bears. That is the longest current streak in the AHL. Boyd was Hershey’s Team MVP in 2016-17, skated in the 2017 AHL All-Star Classic, and was named to the 2016-17 AHL Second All-Star Team.

Headline photo: @Capitals