EAST MEADOW, N.Y. — Semyon Varlamov’s brilliant run of form has forced New York Islanders head coach Patrick Roy’s hand with five games remaining in the regular season.
The veteran backup of Ilya Sorokin will get a second straight start on Tuesday at UBS Arena against the New York Rangers coming off the heels of a 41-save shutout in Saturday night’s 2-0 victory over the Nashville Predators.
“It’s hard to go against Varly right now between you and I,” Roy said when asked about his goalie situation by amNewYork. ‘He’s been playing so well.”
The 35-year-old has won four of his last five starts while posting a stellar .938 save percentage. That includes stopping 26 of 28 shots in a win over the defending Eastern Conference champion Florida Panthers, 36 saves in a loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, and a 31-save showing on April 1 in a win against a Philadelphia Flyers team they have chased — and now caught — for weeks amidst the Metropolitan Division standings.
While the No. 1 netminder in Sorokin has regressed this season, there has been evidence of him breaking out of his slump. He has won each of his last two starts while saving 43 of 46 shots against the Chicago Blackhawks and Columbus Blue Jackets.
“Ilya’s been playing well as well against Chicago and Columbus, but Varly has been in the zone,” Roy said. “He was really good against the Panthers, he was very good in Tampa even though we lost, he was really good against the Flyers, he was phenomenal against Nashville. So it’s harder to go against [Varlamov].”
As the final week of the year commences prior to Monday night’s slate of games, the Islanders (85 points) hold the third-place slot in the Metropolitan Division by two points over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Getting Sorokin right is a necessity, undoubtedly, but Roy simply has to go with his hot hand with every game carrying a win-or-go-home mentality.
“Any team, you want two goalies playing well and that’s what we have,” Roy said. “We consider ourselves very lucky.”
