The New York Islanders turned to Ilya Sorokin for Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes, and the young Russian didn't make it out of the second period in a 3-2 loss at UBS Arena.
There was a time not too long ago when Sorokin was widely considered one of the better goalies in the National Hockey League. But he's struggled mightily over the last couple of postseasons — and that was especially true on Thursday night.
The 28-year-old stopped just 11 of the 14 shots the Canes threw his way in Game 3, and he was pulled before the game was half over. Although Semyon Varlamov stopped all eight shots he faced in relief, the damage was done.
But despite a disastrous start from the former NHL All-Star, head coach Patrick Roy refused to address his goaltender's performance in the loss.
“I'm going to say this: We win and we lose as a team. So I'm not going to go there. But what I'm going to say is sometimes we make changes as a coach because we feel we just want to change the momentum in the game. I'll leave it at that,” explained the Hall of Famer, per ESPN's Greg Wyshynski.
“Right now I'm focusing more on the team than focusing on our goalie.”
Clearly, Roy is hesitant to address Sorokin's struggles. And the series isn't over. But the fact remains, Frederik Andersen has been better than both Sorokin and Varlamov, and that's been one of the differences through three games.
Ilya Sorokin doesn't make it out of 2nd in first postseason action of 2024
Varlamov has been Sorokin's backup for much of his tenure with the Islanders, and it was certainly an interesting choice to go with one Russian over the other in Games 1 and 2.
But it doesn't matter at this point. The Islanders, who were already heavy underdogs against a better Hurricanes team, will need a miracle just to get the series back to Raleigh for Game 5. And Sorokin has not at all been the brick wall the team needed him to be in either of the last two postseasons.
“After finishing second in the Vezina Trophy voting for the NHL's best goaltender last season, Sorokin posted his worst save percentage (.908) and goals-against average (3.01) of his four-season career,” wrote Wyshynski. “He begins an eight year, $66 million contract extension next season for the Islanders, who did not make him available for postgame comments.”
Following being pulled, Sorokin could be seen standing in the hallway to the dressing room looking defeated. He just hasn't been the answer for this team, and they might have no answer for a terrific Hurricanes team.
“It's the game. Anything could happen. It's not the first time,” Varlamov said of his teammate's struggles. “I mean, what are you going to do? You have to move on and then forget about it and then just get ready for the next game.”
That next game could be the last for the Islanders in 2023-24. And with Frederik Andersen playing phenomenal hockey at the other end of the rink, it'll take nothing short of a goaltending masterclass for New York to win this series.
Whether it's Ilya Sorokin or Semyon Varlamov between the pipes on Saturday afternoon at UBS Arena, it's win or go home in Game 4.
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