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Islanders get big Ilya Sorokin update ahead of season opener

Originally posted on NHL on ClutchPoints
By Colin Gallant | Last updated 10/7/24

Ilya Sorokin missed the New York Islanders’ entire preseason after undergoing back surgery to address an offseason injury, but the Russian will be ready to go for opening night, general manager Lou Lamoriello confirmed on Sunday.

Although it’s a phenomenal sign that the 29-year-old is entering the 2024-25 campaign healthy, he might not be between the pipes when the Isles welcome the Utah Hockey Club to UBS Arena on Thursday night.

“We’ll see how it goes tomorrow after today, and then the next day and the next day,” head coach Patrick Roy said on Sunday, according to NHL.com’s Stefen Rosner. “We’ll make our decisions based on that.”

“When he’s ready, he’s ready,” Lamoriello echoed, per Rosner. “I think that the [recovery] process has been exactly what we hoped it would be. And if you want to say we extended it a period of time, we did what had to be done to make sure he was totally 100 percent.”

The last time Sorokin touched the ice for game action, it was Game 3 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Carolina Hurricanes. He was pulled in that contest after allowing three goals on 14 shots, and the Isles ended up losing the series in five games.

That tilt was a microcosm of Sorokin’s season — after turning into one of the best goaltenders in the NHL over the last few years, he had a really tough campaign on Long Island in 2023-24.

Islanders need Ilya Sorokin to be better in 2024-25

New York Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov (40) and goaltender Ilya Sorokin (30) greet each other after the loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in game five of the first round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at PNC Arena. James Guillory-Imagn Images

Sorokin was superb with the Islanders in 2022-23, finishing as a Vezina Trophy finalist after recording a 31–22–7 record along with a sparkling .924 save percentage and a league-leading six shutouts.

That earned him a massive raise, to the tune of an eight-year, $66 million contract extension.

But he struggled last season, coming back to earth with a .908 save percentage and 3.01 goals-against average over 56 starts. Both of those were his lowest in the NHL, and his performance in the playoffs was even worse.

Still, the club clearly has a lot of faith in this netminder, and they’ll need him to bounce back if they hope to return to the postseason next April.

“I can’t control [missing preseason]. I can’t change anything,” Sorokin said on Sunday, per Rosner. “I’m working without having any preseason games. I’m trying to do a lot of mental work, taking this moment to work on my [mental game].

“You are trying to get back your timing. You can find your timing in practice. You don’t need a game to do that. It’s good that I’m facing a lot of shots. Sometimes, I realize that I need to make a move earlier or later. It’s all about timing, but the more I practice, the better I feel.”

Sorokin’s monster new deal will take effect starting this year, and he should remain the starter despite stiff competition from fellow Russian Semyon Varlamov. Varlamov is now 36-years-old, and New York would love to play him a lot less in 2024-25.

At their best, Sorokin and Varlamov make up one of the best tandems in the National Hockey League, and it’ll be intriguing to see how the two perform on Long Island this season. Them both being healthy is an encouraging start.

This article first appeared on NHL on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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