Islanders Name Horvat Captain After Lee Departure

Bo Horvat arrived at the Islanders Children’s Foundation Golf Outing on Monday morning. A crisp white C had been stitched onto the chest of his blue jersey. Someone, joking, handed him a paper C to pin to his polo just in case.

He took the physical captain’s patches. That same day, September 14, 2026, the franchise made the choice public: Horvat was the 16th captain in Islanders history. On its Twitter/X account the team posted under a simple caption. “The ‘C’ belongs to Bo.”

“Such an honor, such a privilege,” Horvat said. “Something, obviously, I don’t take lightly, and I’m very proud to be part of this organization. Very proud to be wearing this letter and representing not only the team, but Long Island itself.”

The letter had become available only after Anders Lee left. Lee had worn it for eight seasons before departing in free agency for the Utah Mammoth. Once the news of the appointment broke, Lee called Horvat to congratulate him.

“Talk about a first-class human being,” Horvat said. “It's going to be big shoes to fill. He did so many great things for this organization, not only on the ice, but off the ice, in the community, within the organization, and obviously we're going to miss him.”

Horvat had worn an A as an Islanders alternate captain for the past two seasons. Born April 5, 1995, in London, Ontario, he is 31. The Vancouver Canucks selected him ninth overall in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft with a pick they had acquired by trading goaltender Cory Schneider to the New Jersey Devils. He played 621 regular-season games for Vancouver across nine seasons, from 2014 to 2023. The Canucks named him captain before the 2019-20 season, and he wore the letter there until the deal that sent him east.

On January 30, 2023, the Islanders acquired him for Anthony Beauvillier, Aatu Raty, and a conditional first-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. Six days later, on February 5, he signed an eight-year extension with New York at an $8.5 million average annual value. He is entering the fourth year of that contract.

His career ledger stands at 618 points — 300 goals and 318 assists — in 881 NHL regular-season games. He has also played 34 career playoff games. With the Islanders the numbers sit in clean balance: 99 goals, 99 assists, 198 points in 260 regular-season games, and 5 points in 11 playoff games. Last season brought 31 goals and 57 points in 68 games, third on the club behind Matthew Barzal and Matthew Schaefer.

Pete DeBoer did not treat the captaincy as a close call. “It was a fairly easy decision,” the coach said. The two had already been together with Team Canada at the 2026 Olympics, where Horvat played, and that left DeBoer sure of what the center would carry.

“I had a real comfort level with what he was going to bring in that spot,” DeBoer said. “And he's going to have fantastic support around him with the other people we have there.”

Kyle Palmieri put the nights in plain terms. “Every night you're going into battle, and he's going to be the first guy there. He's someone who leads by example, which I think, as a player who's been around for a while, that's the type of leader you want. He's a guy who has a lot of respect in our locker room.”

Tony DeAngelo measured the same standard against another veteran who shows up when the clock is short. “It all starts with what you do on the ice. When you look at Jordan Staal in Carolina, when it's a big time in the game, who is on the ice? Jordan Staal. Bo's a lot like that too. We have a penalty kill. We have a faceoff late. We have a power play, penalty kill six-on-five, and he just does things right from practice all the way on through that.”

That presence is what the young group watches, especially 19-year-old Matthew Schaefer.

“It's kind of been awesome having kids young, they're going to remember me playing and remember a lot of it especially as they get older,” Horvat said. “Obviously having a letter on your jersey and being a captain of an NHL team is very special, but to share with my family and my kids is going to be even that much more special.”

Training camp opens this week. Horvat does not plan on changing his leadership or his playing style. He is not the most vocal voice in the locker room. He tries to lead by example.

“Trying to lead by example on and off the ice is my biggest thing, and just continuing to keep pushing forward and getting better,” Horvat said. “Any way I can help the team is what I'm trying to do.”

The Islanders begin the regular season on the road at the Toronto Maple Leafs on September 30.