Counting on a healthy Semyon Varlamov carries big risk for the NY Islanders

New York Islanders GM Mathieu Darche sounded optimistic when discussing Semyon Varlamov's health following the NHL Draft on Saturday. Maybe even more optimistic than some Islanders fans expected.

"As of today, actually, 'Varly's' been on the ice. He told me he felt the best the last four, five years with his knees," Darche said after Day 2 of the NHL Draft wrapped up on Saturday afternoon. "I told him you feel 25? He just said, no, 26."

That's certainly encouraging news for an Islanders team that desperately needs to lighten Ilya Sorokin's workload after watching their franchise goaltender wear down late in each of the last two seasons. But optimism and risk aren't mutually exclusive, and banking on Varlamov as the primary backup next season comes with plenty of both.

The good news is that Varlamov looked strong during his late-season conditioning stint in the AHL. The veteran netminder showed flashes of the goaltender who, for years, formed one of the NHL's best tandem situations alongside Sorokin. At 38 years old, though, the challenge isn't necessarily whether Varlamov can still play at a high level.

It's whether he can stay healthy enough to do it consistently. Darche made clear that the organization hopes Varlamov can provide between 25 and 30 starts next season.

"Hopefully, he gives us the 25-30 starts we want from a backup," Darche said. "He would be an awesome addition, if that works out. He's under contract, he feels great. If he's healthy, he's going to be our backup next year."

The phrase "if he's healthy" is doing a lot of work there.

After all, Varlamov has appeared in just 32 games combined over the last two seasons while dealing with significant knee issues. That's why Darche also acknowledged the Islanders won't simply assume everything will go according to plan.

"We're obviously going to sign other goalies, because we have to protect ourselves," he said.

And they should. If Varlamov can stay healthy and provide 25 to 30 quality starts, the Islanders may once again have one of the better goaltending tandems in the NHL. But counting on a 38-year-old coming off multiple injury-plagued seasons to shoulder that workload is a gamble.

One the Islanders hope pays off.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow