Islanders coach Patrick Roy, arguably the greatest goaltender of all-time, could not stop himself from being honest Tuesday morning when asked about Ilya Sorokin’s recent play.
“That’s a tough one,” he said after a long pause. Then he paused again.
“Yeah. I’m not 100 percent pleased with him,” Roy said. “It’s obvious. And I’m sure he’s not himself.”
While far from a full-throated rip job, that amounts to the toughest criticism a coach has publicly levied on Sorokin — the Islanders’ backbone — in recent memory.
And because it comes from someone with Roy’s standing as a Hall of Fame goaltender, there is added weight.
Sorokin, who stuck to his usual policy Tuesday morning of not talking with reporters when scheduled to play, has continued in his workhorse role for the Islanders this season — his start against the Hurricanes marked his 49th out of 68 games — but with a clear drop-off in play from a superb 2022-23 campaign.
His save percentage has fallen from .924 last season to .908 heading into Tuesday, with a goals allowed average that has jumped over three for the first time in his career.
Previously, Sorokin’s worst-ever mark in the category was 2.40 in 2021-22.
The defense in front of him has been notably worse than before, especially on the penalty kill, but the frequent bailout saves the Islanders had come to expect from their netminder haven’t always been there.
After a historically excellent 51.36 goals saved above expected last season, per Evolving Hockey, Sorokin has stopped a pedestrian 5.64 GSAx this year.
Roy, who clarified multiple times that he still has faith in the Islanders’ goaltending tandem of Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov, said that facing fewer shots a game might be having a detrimental effect on Sorokin, who was routinely seeing 40 or more attempts when Lane Lambert was the coach.
“When you have less [shots], I guess you have more time to think about, ‘OK, I just let that one in. I know I should’ve had that one,’ ” Roy said. “Your mind is not as free. When you have a lot of shots, 40 shots, you go, ‘You know what, I gave up four goals on 40 shots.’ We’re gonna go on statistics, you go, ‘Oh, it’s not a bad game.’ But you give up four [goals] on 20 shots, one every five shots, that’s not very good. That’s how I was when I was playing.”
The Islanders have played significantly better defense in front of Sorokin since Roy took over, going from 34.58 shots allowed per game to 28.74.
They’ve also cut down on high-danger looks, giving up just 9.29 per night under Roy compared to 13.62 under Lambert.
“It’s an adjustment, I guess, for him. Less shots,” Roy said. “But even the chances, we’re cutting down on chances, so it’s a different game, I guess, for him. Every save counts. Am I worried? No.”
No longer are the Islanders relying on Sorokin to win games by himself on a nightly basis, and that is undeniably a good thing.
But the five goals on 31 shots that Sorokin allowed against the Rangers on Sunday, for example, with more than one coming on attempts that should have been saved, just can’t happen.
And he has not stepped up to steal them a 1-0 or 2-1 win lately when doing so would be a huge boost to the team’s collective psyche.
“We don’t want to rely on goaltending,” Roy said. “Goaltending can be a difference maker. It’s up to every one of us to play a certain way and play a good way. The goalie will take care of itself. We have two very good goaltenders and I have zero concern about our goaltending. It’s just for us to continue to play the way we are.”
