Islanders Podcast: Could Ilya Sorokin start in the AHL?

Every week Eyes on Isles offers you a brand new hour-long podcast where we discuss nothing but the New York Islanders. This week, the show focused mainly on the draft.

This is the 139th episode of the Eyes on Isles podcast. For 139 weeks, we’ve been on the mics talking about the New York Islanders for a full hour. Thank you for listening.

In this week’s episode, we spent a lot of time talking about drafts. But before we got into that mess, we spent a considerable amount of time talking about the big news from the last week; Ilya Sorokin.

You can listen to the show on iTunes, Spotify, and Spreaker or wherever you get your podcasts.

Ilya Sorokin

The New York Islanders third-round pick from 2014 is on his way to North America. What do we as Islanders fans need to know about Sorokin? What has he done since the 2014 draft and what might be his role with the Isles in 2020-21?

Could he start the year in the AHL like his friend/rival Igor Shesterkin did for the New York Rangers?

Also, is all the hype around the 24-year-old justified?

Finding Value in 3rd Round

When it comes to the NHL draft, the later the pick, the less likely they are to make an impact at the NHL level. In fact, the greatest drop-off when it comes to NHL impact between two picks is between the third and fourth overall pick. So when it comes to third-round picks, as you can imagine, the potential for an impact in the NHL is low.

The New York Islanders are going into the 2020 draft armed with a third-round pick as their earliest selection.

• What can we expect from the Isles when they get up to the podium for their third-round pick?
• What is their track record when it comes to selecting in the third round?
• Have they made it a habit to find value in the third round?

Best Drafts of the 2010s

Talking about drafts, we looked back at the Islanders last decade of drafts. Which was their best haul, which was their worst, and which is just ‘meh’?