Sorokin could miss start of Islanders training camp after offseason back surgery

WESTBURY, N.Y. -- Ilya Sorokin could miss the first few days of training camp for the New York Islanders after having offseason back surgery.

The 29-year-old goalie has been skating, per Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello. Sorokin went 25-19-12 with a 3.01 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage in 56 games (55 starts) last season. He backed up Semyon Varlamov for the majority of games down the stretch, when New York made a late push to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

"I'm not concerned because we have two very good goaltenders," Islanders coach Patrick Roy said Monday at the team’s annual golf outing. "In the exit meeting with Ilya ... he knows what he has to do, and he knows that I'm with him. He knows I'm trusting him, and he knows that he's going to be an important player on our team.

“So, the surgery that he had for his back, it's not the perfect thing, but I think he'll be fine. And I do believe that we have such a good medical staff that'll take care of him. They'll make sure that when he's ready, he'll help us.”

Lamoriello said Friday that Sorokin sustained an upper-body injury during offseason workouts but was not concerned about his availability for the start of the season.

New York opens training camp Thursday and plays its season opener Oct. 10 against the Utah Hockey Club at UBS Arena.

“During summer training, he had a little bit of a thing. He is skating, but there’s nothing we are concerned about,” Lamoriello said. “Will he miss the first day (of training camp), the first couple of days? Maybe, but I’m going to leave that up to the training staff.”

Sorokin is entering the first season of an eight-year contract he signed with the Islanders on July 1, 2023. He was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, given to the best goalie in the NHL, after going 31-22-7 with a 2.34 GAA, .924 save percentage and an NHL-best six shutouts in 62 games in 2022-23.

New York also signed goalie Marcus Hogberg to a two-year contract May 7, and Keith Kinkaid will be in training camp on a professional tryout.