trim_14028474-D033-4FF6-B654-3A09671C9AFC New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/] forward Bo Horvat is in a goal-scoring slump. The 29-year-old alternate captain has not scored in 12 straight games despite having glorious opportunities, 31 shots, to snap the skid. Losing his left winger, Anthony Duclair, and then his right winger, Mathew Barzal, has undoubtedly made life challenging for No. 14. Duclair (LBI), who has missed 21 games, is skating on his own. Barzal (UBI), who has missed 16, has not yet skated. It would be one thing if his new linemates were struggling to produce and fill the holes, but it's been the complete opposite. Anders Lee has turned back the clock, currently leading the team with 11 goals. He has seven even-strength goals and eight-strength assists in 16 games alongside Horvat. Before Jean-Gabriel Pageau was taken off Horvat's right, he had three even-strength goals and three even-strength assists in 13 games with Bo. Simon Holmstrom, who has skated on Horvat's right the last three games, has four even-strength goals. Since losing Barzal, Horvat has two even-strength goals and 10 even-strength assists in 16 games. We've seen this story before with Horvat. Shortly after the Islanders acquired Horvat on Jan. 30, 2023, Barzal suffered a regular-season-ending ankle injury. In the remaining 23 games, Horvat had four goals after scoring 34 goals in the previous 55 outings -- 31 of which came in 49 games with the Vancouver Canucks. What makes Horvat great is that even when he's not scoring, he's so focused on doing all the other things right that he's still a net positive. Despite no goals over his last 12, he has five assists and has been on the ice for 14 Goals For, the most on the team over that span, winning 64.47% of his face-offs. While Horvat is doing the little things, you can tell Horvat is trying so hard to pot a goal. His shift to start overtime on Tuesday night was the perfect example, with him trying to make an extra move on a 2-on-1, which ended up in a change of possession and Montreal skating off the ice with the extra point: "He's creating chances for himself. I love Bo. And you know what? He's putting too much pressure on himself to score goals," Roy told reporters postgame. "Right now, that's his main focus. Bo Horvat is a 200-foot player. He's a guy who will get those chances, and he will get those goals. So I think right now, he's focusing on scoring goals, and he should just keep playing his game. They will come when you do good things out there. Good things are going to happen to you." Of Horvat's 31 shots on this slump, he owns an Individual Expected Goals (ixG) of 3.21, with 30 scoring chances, 10 of which are considered high-danger, per NaturalStatrick.com [https://www.naturalstattrick.com/playerteams.php?fromseason=20242025&thruseason=20242025&stype=2&sit=all&score=all&stdoi=oi&rate=n&team=NYI&pos=S&loc=B&toi=0&gpfilt=gpteam&fd=&td=&tgp=12&lines=single&draftteam=ALL]. "I would love to see Bo feel more free on the ice and not focusing too much on scoring," Roy said. "I think it's human nature. We all want to do well. We all want to score. When I was a goalie, I wanted to make the big save, the key safe, when you're not doing what you think you could do and what you could be. "But at the same time, you can't get away from what you're doing so well. And he does a lot of good things for us." Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjExMTYwNTM0MDcyOTYwNzAx/usatsi_24902145.jpg] Horvat is being paid $8.5 million annually to score goals for this team. He's been given the short end of the stick twice in three years on the island, losing his linemate(s), which is hard for even the best players in the NHL to overcome. Here's the reality of the situation. Of the Islanders' 26 games this season, 14 have been decided by one goal, where they've gone 4-3-7. It's not all on Bo for why the Islanders aren't in a playoff spot. Currently, two points out of a wild-card position, but one goal here or one goal there from No. 14 is the difference in a few spots in the standings. It's not fair to pin the lack of wins on Horvat alone, but he's played a role, and Roy and the Islanders need him to play his game. He's streaky, so once he sees a puck get past the opposing netminder, don't be shocked if they come in bunches.
