New York Islanders News

The Islanders will turn to Sorokin between the pipes on Tuesday evening against the Detroit Red Wings. Despite two tremendous outings, Patrick Roy and the Islanders' coaching staff continue to be very liberal in their goaltending rotation between Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov. In two contests (1-0-1), Sorokin boasts a gaudy 1.48 GAA and .953 SV%. After an uncharacteristic 2023-24 campaign, he seems on track to return to the form that made him a Vezina-trophy runner-up in the 2022-23 season.

Only five games into his tenure as a New York Islander, Duclair has suffered an undisclosed injury that will keep him sidelined indefinitely. The 30-year-old Duclair was signed in the offseason to add an offensive punch to a typically low-scoring Islanders club and was off to a solid start, with three points (2G / 1A) in five games.

Duclair had to be helped off the ice after suffering an apparent leg injury in Saturday's game. Post-game head coach Patrick Roy did not have an update on Duclair and they don't practice on Sunday, so don't expect an update on the winger until Monday at the earliest.

Sorokin made his season debut for the Islanders on Monday after serving as the backup to Semyon Varlamov in their first two games and put forth an excellent performance, saving 32 of 34 shots (.941 SV%) in a 6-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche, the Islanders first win of the 2024-25 season. Sorokin underwent offseason back surgery after the weakest season of his career in 2023-24, posting a pedestrian 3.01 GAA and .908 SV% in 56 games (25-19-12), but looks poised to return to the form that made him a Vezina-trophy runner-up in 2022-23.

Sorokin made his season debut for the Islanders on Monday after serving as the backup to Semyon Varlamov in their first two games and put forth an excellent performance, saving 32 of 34 shots (.941 SV%) in a 6-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche, the Islanders first win of the 2024-25 season. Sorokin underwent offseason back surgery after the weakest season of his career in 2023-24, posting a pedestrian 3.01 GAA and .908 SV% in 56 games (25-19-12), but looks poised to return to the form that made him a Vezina-trophy runner-up in 2022-23.

After losing their first two games of the season, the Islanders will finally turn to 2022-23 Vezina-trophy runner-up Sorokin in between the pipes. Sorokin had a disappointing 2023-24 campaign, posting a 3.01 GAA and .908 SV% in 56 outings (25-19-12), and seemingly fell out of favor with head coach Patrick Roy. That said, the 29-year-old Sorokin has been terrific over his four-year NHL career, accumulating a terrific 2.54 GAA and .919 SV% in 192 career contests (95-65-30). The Islanders enter action on Monday as +135 road underdogs against the winless Colorado Avalanche.

After losing their first two games of the season, the Islanders will finally turn to 2022-23 Vezina-trophy runner-up Sorokin in between the pipes. Sorokin had a disappointing 2023-24 campaign, posting a 3.01 GAA and .908 SV% in 56 outings (25-19-12), and seemingly fell out of favor with head coach Patrick Roy. That said, the 29-year-old Sorokin has been terrific over his four-year NHL career, accumulating a terrific 2.54 GAA and .919 SV% in 192 career contests (95-65-30). The Islanders enter action on Monday as +135 road underdogs against the winless Colorado Avalanche.

Patrick Roy favoured Varlamov last season after taking over the Islanders' head coaching duties and will turn to Varlamov for consecutive games to start the season. The 36-year-old Varlamov was great last season, posting a 2.60 GAA and .918 SV% in 28 games (14-8-4), but struggled in the Islanders season opener on Thursday, allowing five goals on 26 shots (.808 SV%) in 5-4 overtime loss to the Utah Hockey Club.

Patrick Roy favored Varlamov last season after taking over the Islanders' head coaching duties and appears to be doing so again, likely turning to Varlamov for consecutive games to start the season. The 36-year-old Varlamov was great last season, posting a 2.60 GAA and .918 SV% in 28 games (14-8-4), but struggled in the Islanders season opener on Thursday, allowing five goals on 26 shots (.808 SV%) in 5-4 overtime loss to the Utah Hockey Club.

Sorokin underwent back surgery in the offseason and, despite being ready to play, will serve as the backup to Semyon Varlamov in the Islanders' season opener on Thursday. Last season, after Patrick Roy became head coach of the Islanders, Sorokin's workload decreased dramatically. Sorokin had a poor campaign by his standards, posting a 3.01 GAA and .908 SV%, and will need to improve to his Vezina-caliber numbers of years past if he plans to regain the trust of the coach as one of the premier netminders in the league.

Ilya Sorokin has fully recovered from offseason back surgery but will start the season backing up Varlamov, as he did for much of the stretch run and into the playoffs last season. Varlamov has a report with head coach Patrick Roy from their days with the Colorado Avalanche and could find himself in a position to garner more starts again this season if his play warrants it. The 36-year-old Varlamov is coming off a solid 2023-24 campaign, posting a .260 GAA and .918 SV% in 28 games (14-8-4).

Sorokin missed the start of training camp after undergoing offseason back surgery but GM Lou Lamoriello said that "he's ready" for the start of the season. It's still unclear if Sorokin or Semyon Varlamov will get the start but it's good news that Sorokin won't miss any time to start the year.

Sorokin's return date is still unclear after the 29-year-old successfully underwent back surgery in the offseason. However, he had some incredibly positive signs on Thursday after he returned to Islanders' practice in full for the first time. The four-year NHL veteran claimed he felt good during the skate and is hopeful to be back shortly. Sorokin endured one of the roughest seasons of his professional career in 2023-24, posting a 25-19-12 record with a 3.01 GAA and .909 SV%.

Islanders' GM Lou Lamoriello said that Sorokin could miss the first couple of days of training camp but there's no concern about his injury extending into the regular season. Sorokin will be looking to bounce-back in 2024-25, after posting career worsts in GAA (3.01) and SV% (.908) in 56 games last season.

Cholowski spent the entire 2024 season in Bridgeport (AHL), where he had 31 points (7G / 24A) in 68 games. Since signing with the Islanders prior to the 2023 season, Cholowski has appeared in just two NHL games but has eight goals and 61 assists (69 points) in 135 AHL games. Expect him to continue to provide offence at the AHL-level and be one of the first names the Islanders consider when they need help on their NHL blueline.

After a long offseason discussion period Oliver Wahlstrom will remain in New York after signing a one-year, $1 million contract extension with the Islanders. The 24-year-old right-winger had an incredibly down 2023-24 season, appearing in his least amount of games (32) in the passed four seasons and only putting up two goals, six points, eight PIMs and 41 SOG.