But it wasn't until Saturday that being a Bruin finally felt official, as Horton skated in his first full workout with the coaching staff as training camp kicked off in earnest at the Garden.
"It was nice to finally get it over with," said Horton, who was acquired in June in a trade from Florida. "I've been waiting a while to get on the ice for real. It was fun out there. It's nice to be out there with the guys."
Horton is an old hand at training camp, as he enters his seventh season in the NHL. But this is a new situation for him, as it's the first time he joined a new team since being drafted third overall by the Panthers back in 2003.
"The best part for me is to get time to meet the guys a bit more and get more comfortable," said Horton. "The worst part is just going through the hard skates, but it gets you ready for the games so it's both good and bad."
The biggest change for Horton is adjusting to the talent level around him in Boston after so many years with the struggling Panthers, who never reached the postseason in Horton's time there.
"We have so many great players here," said Horton. "Even the young players are great. This is going to be a good team here for a lot of years. It's just nice to be on the ice with so many great players and be able to make plays. It's just the first session, and I was able to have a lot of fun and hopefully we can continue that."
Horton got a chance to see some of Boston's youngsters in action earlier in the week, as he took in one of the rookie games against the Islanders. He was impressed with the skill he saw from the rookies, but the crowds on hand – 11,571 on Wednesday and 14,180 on Thursday – made an even bigger impression.
"We came to the one, and it was pretty nice to see," said Horton. "There was a big crowd. It was like a playoff game. I haven't seen that in a long time. I was shocked. So many people, so many fans, cheering loud, and it's a rookie game. You can tell the fan support here. They like their hockey and they take pride in winning. It's definitely fun for me. We didn't even have that for the regular season. Maybe 4,000."
The one disappointment for Horton is the fact that Marc Savard is sidelined for the start of camp with post-concussion syndrome symptoms. Savard was expected to center Horton on Boston's top line. The new winger will have to find chemistry with another setup man, but at least the Bruins still have some appealing options with David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron and even rookie Tyler Seguin.
Horton wasn't sure who he would end up playing with, and expected to try out a few combinations in camp to find the right fit. On Saturday, he skated with Zach Hamill in the first session, with camp invite Jordan Smotherman on the other wing as the Bruins open camp with 53 players split into two groups. Horton will have a more seasoned centerman by the time the real games begin, but those final line combinations won't be determined until much later in camp.
"It depends, it's all about a comfort level I guess," said Horton. "Sometimes you click right away and sometimes you don't. Eventually hopefully you click with someone and stick with it and make things work."
"I don't know what to expect," added Horton. "I'm just going to try my hardest and I'll let the coaches worry about that."
