Ilya Sorokin is playing the best brand of hockey we've seen from him.
Ilya Sorokin is playing the best brand of hockey we've seen from him.
EAST MEADOW, NY -- New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin is at the top of his game, and head coach Patrick Roy is rewarding him with the final two starts before the NHL's 4 Nations Face-Off.
"The plan is for him to play in both games, but I don't like to go too far ahead," Roy said. "We'll focus on Winnipeg, but the plan is, yeah, for him to play both games."
Long Island battles the Winnipeg Jets on Friday night before battling the Minnesota Wild on Saturday, with a two-week break to follow.
While workload always will remain a touchy subject when it comes to the 29-year-old backstop who underwent offseason back surgery this summer, the Islanders need him between the pipes.
As of Thursday, the Islanders are three points behind the second wild-card spot. If everything works perfectly, they could be in a playoff spot on Sunday morning.
At the very least, they could be extremely close.
Goaltender Jakub Skarek was fine in his NHL debut, stopping 27 of 32 against the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers.
But Sorokin is playing lights out and gives his team the best chance to win.
Sorokin is 2-1-0 in three career appearances against the Winnipeg Jets with a 1.35 GAA and a .937 SV%, with one shutout.
He is 0-3-1 in four career games against Minnesota, with a 2.71 GAA and a .916 SV%.
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