If the Islanders didn't have Varlamov, Sorokin's injury could have been a death sentence for the 2024-25 season.
If the Islanders didn't have Varlamov, Sorokin's injury could have been a death sentence for the 2024-25 season.
EAST MEADOW, NY -- On Thursday morning, the New York Islanders welcomed Ilya Sorokin back to practice for the first time since undergoing offseason back surgery:
The 29-year-old didn't look limited in goal, moving well laterally and looking like his explosive self.
There's a major difference between Sorokin being 100 percent healthy and 100 percent game-ready, as head coach Patrick Roy will be taking a day-by-day approach with his starting netminder.
And that's the right approach, as Sorokin is a long-term investment. This season, he begins an eight-year deal worth $8.25 million annually.
Check out my story for NHL.com, with quotes from Sorokin, Roy, and some words from Sorokin's best friend Alexander Romanov on just how much work the star-studded netminder put in to get back:
Although Sorokin is doing "everything he can" to be ready for opening night on Oct. 10 against the Utah Hockey Club, it would be a shock if No. 30 was in between the pipes for that game.
For many teams, an injury to a star netminder would have been a death sentence.
However, because of the value general manager Lou Lamoriello puts on the goaltender position, the Islanders didn't need to worry too much.
Had the Islanders not had Semyon Varlamov, Lamoriello likely would have had to try and trade for a goalie with no leverage, given the team's situation.
Depending on how that went, the Islanders may have rushed Sorokin back, which could have had long-term effects that would have destroyed the future of this Islanders team.
Luckily for the Islanders, that was not the case.
Varlamov has been a tremendous Islander.
He started his Long Island career in 2019 when Lamoriello signed him to replace Robin Lehner, who had just won the Jennings Trophy alongside Thomas Greiss.
Varlamov and Greiss were a rather strong duo in 2019-20, as both played a part in the Islanders making it to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 1993.
During that Canadian bubble playoff, Sorokin came over from the KHL as the team's top goalie prospect.
Although Sorokin was ineligible to play in the playoffs, his arrival signaled the upcoming departure of Greiss, giving the Islanders a Varlamov-Sorokin tandem for the 2021-22 season and beyond.
Having Varlamov, a fellow Russian, was a godsend for Sorokin, who had an automatic best bud to work out with while getting accustomed to the North American game and lifestyle.
Over those next few years, there was a shift in roles as the ultra-reliable Varlamov played fewer and fewer games over the last few seasons while Sorokin saw an uptick in responsibility.
Because of Sorokin's potential, many fans begged the Islanders to move Varlamov during his contract year, 2022-23.
The Islanders' cap situation wasn't the greatest, and getting Varlamov and his $5 million off the books would allow them to avoid losing him for nothing in free agency.
Per industry sources, Lamoriello received calls on Varlamov around the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline but didn't bite.
On July 1, 2023, the Islanders announced they had signed Sorokin to an eight-year extension worth $66 million, a long-term deal he begins this season.
But that wasn't the only signing announced on July 1.
The Islanders also signed Pierre Engvall and Scott Mayfield, each to seven-year extensions. They also signed Varlamov to a four-year, $11 million deal worth $2.75 million annually.
It was a mind-boggling move for a few reasons.
Sorokin had just wrapped up a Vezina-worthy season, posting a 31-22-7 record with a 2.34 GAA, a .924 SV%, and a league-leading 6 shutouts.
Bringing back Varlamov as a backup wasn't the real issue.
The issue was that the grizzled veteran took less than a 50 percent pay cut, and four years seemed a bit lengthy.
The Islanders were already cap-strapped, so this move and others complicated their ability to change the roster in free agency.
Minus moving on from Josh Bailey's $5 million cap hit ahead of the final year of his deal, the Islanders ran the same group back.
Varlamov's return on investment proved vital last season as Sorokin struggled mightily.
Thanks to Patrick Roy, who took over for Lane Lambert on Jan. 30, and his trust in Varlamov from their time in Colorado, the Islanders went on a run to qualify for the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs before being bounced by the Hurricanes in the first round for a second straight postseason.
After working with goalie coaches and watching film, the hope is that Sorokin would be the No. 1 guy, with Varlamov taking a significantly lesser role.
When the Islanders signed former Ottawa Senators netminder Marcus Hogberg on May 7, it was impossible not to think that the Islanders could move on from Varlamov ahead of the 2024-25 season, saving $1.975 million.
It wasn't a knock on Varlamov at all, but again, the Islanders were going to be cap-strapped again, and two goalies making a combined $11 million annually was a lot, especially for a team with glaring holes.
But the NHL Draft came and went, and Lamoriello didn't move Varlamov or any of his picks.
As the summer progressed, rumors started circulating about Sorokin dealing with something, and it wasn't until the team's golf outing a few days before the opening of training camp that we learned he had off-season back surgery with no timetable for his return.
But because Lamoriello valued his goaltending, this terrible news was mitigated because Varlamov is still on Long Island.
With Sorokin back at practice a week before opening night, he hasn't been ruled out yet from starting opening night.
But, if Sorokin isn't ready by Oct. 10, and he likely won't be, Varlamov will start opening night and carry the workload until the franchise netminder is ready.
Lamoriello deserves a lot of credit for how he's handled the netminder position over his tenure on Long Island, not moving Varlamov turning into one of his best moves.