Rittich has only played once this season, but he was instrumental in an impressive 4-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers, saving 31 of 33 shots (.939 SV%). In the five games that Rittich has not played, the Islanders are allowing 4.0 goals per game. The 33-year-old Rittich returns to the crease on Thursday against a red-hot Detroit Red Wings team on the tail end of a back-to-back, hoping to build off his strong start to the 2025-26 season.
The Islanders are off to a 2-3-0 start to the 2025-26 season and have relied heavily on Ilya Sorokin, but he has not been able to consistently deliver when called upon. The 30-year-old Sorokin has an alarming 4.13 GAA and .861 SV% in four games this season (1-3-0). Sorokin and the Islanders hope to rebound on Tuesday when they face-off against the San Jose Sharks, the only team in the NHL yet to record a victory (0-3-2).
Romanov did not play in the Islanders' previous game, but he was back at practice on Monday. The 25-year-old Romanov has 12 blocks and 15 hits through four games this season. The Islanders return to action on Tuesday against the San Jose Sharks.
Boqvist played in 17 games with the Islanders last season, tallying two goals and six assists (eight points). He will draw into the lineup on Saturday because Alexander Romanov is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Romanov missed Friday's practice and will not play in Saturday's game vs. the Senators. With Romanov day-to-day, Adam Boqvist will make his season debut on Saturday.
The Islanders have struggled to score goals early in the 2025-26 season, outscored 7-13 in three games (0-3-0), and will attempt a shake-up, sending Tsyplakov to the press box as a healthy scratch. The 26-year-old forward scored 35 points (10G / 25A) playing 77 games with the Islanders in his first NHL season in 2024-25.
Sorokin gave up four goals on 25 shots in the Islanders loss to the Jets on Monday. He was giving Thursday night off and David Rittich turned in an excellent performance, but they will go back to Sorokin this afternoon in Ottawa. Sorokin has allowed four goals in all three of his starts this season, going 0-3-0 with a 4.18 GAA and .854 SV%.
The winless Islanders (0-3-0) will hope for a better result on Thursday, turning to Rittich for his Islanders debut season in a meeting with the Edmonton Oilers. The 33-year-old Rittich was serviceable in two seasons as the Los Angeles Kings' backup goalie, posting a 2.55 GAA and .902 SV% in 58 combined games (29-20-5). Rittich has played reasonably well in his career against Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers, posting a 2.68 GAA and .906 SV% in 14 appearances (5-5-1).
With Jonathan Drouin returning from a one-game suspension, Gatcomb will head to the press box as a healthy scratch. The 26-year-old Gatcomb made his season debut on Saturday, playing 8:33 time-on-ice and recording seven hits.
Drouin had an impressive start to his tenure with the Islanders, scoring a goal before being ejected from the game with a major penalty and a game misconduct. He was suspended for one game and will return to the lineup on October 13th against the Winnipeg Jets.
Ritchie was acquired before last season's trade deadline as part of a deal that sent Brock Nelson to the Colorado Avalanche. The 20-year-old Ritchie has not yet made his regular-season debut with the Islanders and will have to wait a while longer as he is set to begin his 2025-26 campaign in the AHL after returning from a lower-body injury.
Searching for their first victory of the 2025-26 season (0-2-0), the Islanders will roll with Sorokin for a third straight game. The 30-year-old Sorokin is coming off a disappointing season in which he posted a 2.71 GAA and .907 SV% in 60 games (30-24-6). Through two games this season (0-2-0), the veteran goalie has a 4.21 GAA and .860 SV%; not promising numbers for a goalie hoping to return to the 2.34 GAA and .924 SV% he posted in 2022-23, when he finished as the runner-up for the Vezina Trophy. The Islanders enter Monday's contest as +111 home underdogs against the Winnipeg Jets.
Drouin had an impressive start to his tenure with the Islanders, scoring a goal before being ejected from the game with a major penalty and a game misconduct. He will be eligible to return to the lineup on October 13th against the Winnipeg Jets.
After posting elite totals in his first three NHL seasons, Sorokin has posted a 2.86 GAA and .908 SV% in 117 combined appearances over the last two seasons (55-43-18); a steep decline from the 2.34 GAA and .924 SV% in his previous 136 games (70-46-18). Although still a talented netminder, Sorokin's recent stats are likely more aligned with what can be expected in the 2025-26 season. Still, the Islanders enter their season-opening matchup on Thursday as -127 road favourites against a Pittsburgh Penguins team coming off a 3-0 opening-night victory over the New York Rangers.
The Islanders signed Bear to a one-year contract in the offseason to provide some depth on their blueline, but he will need to wait to make his team debut as he will be sidelined for a few weeks on Injured Reserve. The 28-year-old Bear spent the entirety of the 2024-25 season in the AHL, tallying 46 points (10G / 36A) in 62 games with the Hershey Bears. He has 67 points (17G / 50A) in 275 career NHL games.
Coming off offseason surgery, it's unclear when Varlamov will return to action, but he will start the 2025-26 campaign sidelined on the Injured Reserve. The 37-year-old netminder was limited to only 10 games last season (3-4-3), posting a 2.89 GAA and .889 SV%, due to various injuries.
Engvall continues to recover from offseason hip surgery and is not expected to be ready for opening night, so expect him to start the season on IR. Once healthy, Engvall will likely once again be battling for playing time in the Islanders' bottom-6.
Ritchie was acquired before last season's trade deadline as part of a deal that sent Brock Nelson to the Colorado Avalanche. The 20-year-old Ritchie has not yet made his regular-season debut with the Islanders and will likely have to wait a while longer, as he will likely not be ready for their season opener next week.
