Tuesday may rank amongst the extra irritating nights of Bo Horvat’s profession.
Not solely did he endure a twelfth straight sport with out a purpose, however he caught the incorrect finish of a nasty bounce in additional time — blocking a shot off his skate, which then caromed to Nick Suzuki for the game-winning purpose.
That play, which sealed a 2-1 loss for the Islanders, is as unfortunate because it will get. However that was not a lot consolation for Horvat.
“At the end of the day, I gotta put the puck in the net,” he stated. “That’s what I’m right here for. That’s a part of my sport. It’s who I’m, too.
“I can say I’m getting chances all I want. At the end of the day, I gotta start putting it in the net. That’s on me.”
It’s in all probability not a lot of a coincidence that Horvat’s scoring drought has coincided with Mat Barzal being out — he’s scored simply twice since Barzal received harm — however that doesn’t change what the Islanders want from Horvat, an everyday 30-goal scorer previously.
If something, it amplifies the necessity for him to attain.
Horvat’s line, with Anders Lee and Simon Holmstrom (who lately changed Jean-Gabriel Pageau), has contributed repeatedly, with Lee’s 11 objectives main the Islanders.
This configuration, Horvat acknowledged, places him in additional of a distributing position than when he’s with Barzal.
Nonetheless, 12 video games is a very long time to go with out a purpose.
Isles coach Patrick Roy posited that it could be extra productive for Horvat to deal with what he’s doing properly.
“He’s putting too much pressure on himself scoring goals. Right now it’s his main focus,” Roy stated. “Bo Horvat is a 200-foot player. It’s a guy that will get those chances and will get those goals. So I think right now, he’s focused on scoring goals. He should keep playing his game. They will come. When you do good things out there, good things will happen to you.”
Which may assist. However Horvat just isn’t incorrect to say that purpose scoring is an enormous a part of why he’s right here.
And that no matter else he’s doing proper, he must be placing pucks within the web.
“It’s bearing down. It’s getting the right bounce instead of the wrong one,” he stated. “It’s definitely frustrating, I’m not gonna lie. It’s not fun. My linemates are doing a great job scoring for me. If that means I have to pass and let them get all the goals, then so be it. As long as we win hockey games at the end of the day.”
