New York Islanders star forward Bo Horvat hasn't played since New Year's Day after suffering an upper-body injury in a 7-2 loss to the Utah Mammoth at UBS Arena. Following a nine-game absence, the veteran will return to the lineup against the red hot Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon, he confirmed at Friday's practice.
“I think it's a big thing, obviously: No. 1 to be ready to go for the Islanders but also getting some games in before you head to Milan,” Horvat said, per NHL.com's Stefen Rosner. “It's super important not only for me but I think for the team, as well. Kind of get back in the swing of things, get back into game shape. I'm just really excited to be back.”
Horvat was named to Canada's Winter Olympic team earlier this month, and there was some concern about his availability after he's sustained two separate injuries over the last six weeks.
But it looks like it's all systems go for the center, who leads the Isles with 21 goals and is third on the team with 33 points in just 36 games. He was skating on the top line alongside Emil Heineman and Jonathan Drouin on Friday, and also taking reps with the first powerplay unit.
Head coach Patrick Roy is happy to get his top pivot back in the lineup ahead of a critical stretch before the Olympic pause.
“That's the plan, to play tomorrow,” Roy said of Horvat, per NHL.com. “We'll see after warmups 100 percent but the plan is to play. … He's our top goal scorer, and he's playing [penalty kill] and power play, and wins big face-offs. Yeah, it's nice to have him back.”
Islanders fared well without Bo Horvat
The Isles are a much better team with Horvat in the lineup, but have had success even in the absence of the star Canadian. In the nine games that he's missed, New York has gone 5-3-1, including a 9-0 shellacking of the New Jersey Devils on Jan. 6.
Now 27-18-5 and third in the Metropolitan Division, the Islanders are well-positioned to return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs after a rare miss in 2024-25.
Horvat should play a key role down the stretch; New York only has eight more games before the NHL shuts down for the Olympics.
They'll face a Sabres club on Saturday that has won 17 of 21 games to surge back into relevance in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Puck is set to drop on the cross-division tilt just past 1:00 p.m. ET from Long Island.
