Bo Horvat, Ondrej Palat Head to Milan as Islanders Hit Olympic Break
For five weeks, Bo Horvat kept his focus locked in on the Islanders’ playoff push, refusing to let his mind wander to the Olympic stage. But once the final horn sounded in Newark on Thursday night-after a 3-1 win over the Devils in which Horvat netted the game-winner-he finally let himself look ahead.
The Islanders’ dressing room was mostly cleared out when captain Anders Lee walked over, shook Horvat’s hand, pulled him in for a hug, and wished him luck. Horvat couldn’t hide the grin. The moment had arrived: he was officially turning the page to Milan.
Horvat will represent Team Canada at the upcoming Winter Olympics, while his linemate Ondrej Palat will suit up for Team Czechia. Both veterans have walked the fine line between national pride and NHL duty with impressive discipline, compartmentalizing their Olympic dreams until the Islanders hit the break.
“I try not to look too far ahead and just focus on the game-by-game here,” Horvat said before Thursday’s matchup. “Obviously, when you get over there, you can consider yourself an Olympian. Even just to be named to the team has been special.”
This will be Horvat’s Olympic debut at age 30, though he’s no stranger to international competition, having played for Canada at the IIHF World Championships in 2018 and 2025. For Palat, 34, the trip to Milan marks a return to Olympic play for the first time since Sochi 2014-the last time NHL players participated in the Games.
Palat, who was acquired from the Devils on January 27, spoke like a seasoned pro when asked about the transition from NHL hockey to international play.
“We’ve done that a couple times already,” Palat said. “It’s the same thing after the season with the World Championships.
You just go to a different team and you go through the systems. Then you come back and you’re pretty familiar with the system here and the guys here.
Nothing crazy or special.”
But if the shift in systems isn’t dramatic, the intensity sure is. The difference in pace and pressure between a regular-season NHL game and a best-on-best Olympic matchup is stark-and that might actually work in the Islanders’ favor.
While most of the roster gets a needed breather, Horvat and Palat will be staying sharp in high-stakes, high-speed games. When the NHL schedule resumes on February 26 in Montreal, that could give the Isles a leg up.
“Keeping your game legs,” Horvat said. “Keeping that pace.
These are going to be highly competitive games. Fast.
Coming back with that experience, to be exposed to that kind of play, hopefully it translates coming back and you come back with that same pace and that same intensity for the rest of the season.”
And yes, Horvat’s been doing some Olympic daydreaming. He admitted to scrolling through social media, checking out images of the Olympic Village, the rinks, and the facilities.
“It’s fun to see,” he said. “You get different snapshots of the village.
You get different snapshots of the rinks and the facilities. It makes me that much more excited to get over there.
You’re not going to get the full experience until you actually get over there and you’re a part of it. I’m just really looking forward to getting over there.”
Now, with the Islanders on pause, Horvat can finally let himself soak it in.
Drouin’s Drought: A Puzzling Season for a Proven Playmaker
While Horvat and Palat head to Italy, one of the more pressing questions facing the Islanders during the break revolves around forward Jonathan Drouin.
The veteran winger entered the Olympic pause with just three goals in 51 games-a stat that doesn’t line up with the expectations that came with his two-year, $8 million deal. Known more as a setup man than a sniper, Drouin’s scoring struggles aren’t entirely out of character, but the lack of production has been hard to ignore.
He’s riding a 34-game goal drought, and though he had similarly low goal totals during stretches with the Canadiens-just two in 44 games in 2020-21, and two more in 58 games two seasons later-he also showed flashes of offensive touch last year with 11 goals in 43 games for the Avalanche.
So what’s going on?
Drouin is still getting his chances. He’s tied for ninth on the team in shots (68), but his shooting percentage has cratered to 4.4%, tied for 18th on the roster. In the last three games before the break, he managed just one shot on net in each of the first two and missed the net entirely in the third.
“Bit of both,” Drouin said when asked whether his struggles are more frustrating or encouraging. “At the moment, you’re mad it’s not going in.
I’ve said it for a couple of weeks now, I’m not producing the way I wanted to this year. But you’ve got to look at the positive.
You’re getting chances, you’re getting looks. When those looks go away, that’s when you start worrying about it.”
Drouin’s average ice time of 17:17 ranks fourth among Islanders forwards, a sign that head coach Patrick Roy still trusts him in key situations. But that leash may shorten if the post-break production doesn’t improve-especially with the playoff race tightening.
A Break for Everyone-Including the Bench Boss
It’s not just the players who need a reset. Coaches, too, are running on fumes by this point in the season, and Patrick Roy made it clear he’s ready to unplug.
“Yes, absolutely,” Roy said after Thursday’s win. “I promise you for the next 10 days I won’t even open my computer. I’ll be ready when I come back.”
That’s a well-earned breather for a coach who’s been burning the candle at both ends since stepping behind the Islanders’ bench. And when the team returns to action later this month, they’ll be hoping that time off-combined with the Olympic reps for Horvat and Palat-helps spark a strong final push.
For now, the page turns to Milan. But soon enough, it’ll be back to business.