Marcus Hogberg has been spectacular for the NY Islanders in Varlamov's absence

Marcus Hogberg doesn't know how much longer he'll be with the New York Islanders, but whenever regular backup goaltender Semyon Varlamov returns, Hogberg will be able to say that he made the most of his opportunities when asked to step in for Ilya Sorokin.

At Saturday's morning skate, we learned that Sorokin, who had shut out the Vegas Golden Knights two days prior, was sick and would not be available for the game against Utah Hockey Club. That meant Bridgeport goalie Jacob Skarek was an emergency call-up, and Hogberg made his second start of the season on short notice.

All Hogberg did was stop 21 of 22 shots for his first NHL win since April 28, 2021as the Islanders came back in the third period to win 2-1 and earn their first three-game winning streak of the season. "He played two very good games for us and gave us a chance in the second some really good saves because they were in the paint a lot," said Patrick Roy. "I think he played really well for us."

Hogberg has been better than good for the Islanders; he has been great. The 30-year-old is 1-1-0 and has a 1.56 GAA and sparkling .950 save percentage in 153 minutes, allowing only four goals on 80 shots. According to statistician Eric Hornick, that GAA and save percentage is the best in Islanders history for any goalie that has played in multiple games. With the win, he became the 52nd goaltender to win a game for the franchise and the ninth with exactly one.

"The last couple of minutes, the boys blocked so many shots, I didn't see anything," said Hogberg during a post-game interview with MSG Networks. "It means a lot [to win for the first time in over three years]. It's great to get a win. We had a really good road trip here. I had a really good time today."

Varlamov is expected to be back practicing with the team when they return home for a season-long seven-game homestand. Hogberg has allowed Varly to rush things back, and although Sorokin has been asked to carry a heavy load, he has shown that he is more than capable of stepping in and stepping up as a backup goaltender at the NHL level.