Despite an injury sidelining Holmstrom, Sorokin aims to rebound as the Islanders face the Sabres, seeking a crucial win.
BUFFALO, NY — New York Islanders forward Simon Holmstrom will miss their Tuesday night game against the Buffalo Sabres after sustaining an upper-body injury in their 8-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday night.
Holmstrom went hard into the boards in the first period, but remained in the game.
With Holmstrom out, forward Anthony Duclair returns to the lineup for the first time since March 21, their 7-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens, which came five games ago.
He'll skate alongside Brayden Schenn and Mathew Barzal, with Barzal going back to his usual spot on the top power-play unit.
Ilya Sorokin, who was pulled after he allowed a career-high seven goals on 29 shots in an 8-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday, will start against Buffalo.
Sorokin had only been pulled once this season, in the finale of a three-game road trip, a 7-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday, March 21.
He allowed six goals on 26 shots through 50:47 minutes.
That game was also the first of a back-to-back, with Roy citing that pulling Sorokin was to keep him fresh for a pivotal Sunday night game against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The move paid off as Sorokin stopped all 26 shots that came his way for a critical 1-0 shutout win.
"Last time," Roy pointed out as to why Sorokin gets the call less than 24 hours after the loss to Pittsburgh. "Last time we played against Montreal, and then we came back against Columbus, he played a strong game, so certainly wanted him to be in tonight, and I think we owe him this after the way we played in front of him. So I'm sure it's a great opportunity for everyone to play a good game."
The Islanders are 9-3-1 on the second legs of back-to-backs this season. Sorokin is 5-1-0 and has not faced the Sabres this season.