BO ON BOARD
Islanders skate past Flyers in Horvat’s debut
PHILADELPHIA — Kyle Palmieri and Mathew Barzal scored for the Islanders in their first game since they acquired All-Star center Bo Horvat, leading them to a 2-1 victory over the Flyers on Monday night.
Horvat made his debut a day after the Islanders signed him to an eightyear contract worth $68 million. The 27-year-old was chosen as an AllStar and played for the Pacific Division on Saturday. Horvat had already tied his career high with 31 goals this season in 49 games with Vancouver.
Coach Lane Lambert said Horvat can only help as the Islanders make a playoff push in a crowded bottom half of the Eastern Conference. The Islanders now have 57 points and matched the idle Penguins for eighth in the East.
“In terms of how it changes moving forward, it gives us more options,” Lambert said. “We know what we have to do as a group. We’ve got to string together some wins. That’s the focus right now.”
Horvat was a non-factor in the Islander goals. Palmieri scored his seventh on a wrist shot in the first that snapped the Islanders’ 0-for-26 power-play drought. Barzal beat Carter Hart for his 13th goal and a 2-0 lead in the 2 1 second.
Noah Dobson earned his 18th assist on Barzal’s goal and collected his 100th career point. He expected Horvat to make an immediate impact.
“Obviously the caliber of player and person he is going to fit in well with this locker room,” Dobson said.
Semyon Varlamov stopped 25 shots for the Islanders.
Nicolas Deslauriers scored his third goal for the Flyers.
The Flyers are out of the playoff picture but, perhaps even worse to some fans, are falling out of the race to earn the No. 1 pick and a shot at drafting a projected generational talent in Connor Bedard.
The Flyers won seven of eight games after Christmas and tacked on another three-game winning streak later in January to earn some needed confidence in coach John Tortorella’s first season.
There is a no-tank ethos in the no-nonsense Tortorella.
“I think there’s a right type of camaraderie going on with this club right now,” Tortorella said. “I thought we played our best month of hockey in January. I think it builds the belief. Belief is a very powerful thing if you get it to go from one guy to another and then you get it to a group. I’m hoping that’s the way they feel.”