Islanders' Ilya Sorokin calls it 'a tough season for me'
New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin speaks to the media in the locker room at Northwell Health Ice Center on Friday. Credit: Brad Penner
Ilya Sorokin channeled Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Terminator” character as he tried to express how motivated he’ll be for next season after an inconsistent performance in 2023-24.
“I’ll be back,” said the Islanders goalie, who will enter an eight-year, $66 million deal next season.
“I want to start skating Monday,” Sorokin said on Friday at Northwell Health Ice Center in East Meadow as the Islanders conducted exit interviews three days after their season ended with a 6-3 loss to the Hurricanes in Game 5 of their first-round series. “It’s because the season is fresh in my mind.”
Sorokin, expected to be the No. 1 goalie after finishing second in the Vezina Trophy balloting last season, played only once in the postseason and was pulled from Game 3 at UBS Arena after allowing three goals on 14 shots.
He went 25-19-12 with a 2.99 goals-against average and .909 save percentage in the regular season after going 31-22-7 with a 2.33 GAA and .924 save percentage the season before.
Semyon Varlamov played the bulk of the games down the stretch after Sorokin appeared in 32 of 39 games between Dec. 23 and March 24.
“I think it’s a lot of factors,” Sorokin said. “There were hard parts of January and February. A lot of games. For all goalies, it’s small details and you should control the details. When you lose this, it’s like it snowballs.
“It was a tough season for me. When you’re not winning, you learn. I have the confidence and motivation to be better.”
That’s what Varlamov expects.
“He’s a great goalie,” Varlamov said. “In your career, there’s always ups and downs. You have to move forward no matter what. I’m sure he’s going to come back next year and play great again. Everybody just needs to get away from hockey for a couple of months and then come back with a fresh mind.”
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
