NHL Network pundits split on whether Ilya Sorokin deserves a Top 5 ranking

By his own admission, Ilya Sorokin had a down season in 2023-24, but that hasn't prevented him from being ranked among the best goaltenders in the NHL ahead of next season. Case in point, the NHL Network has Sorokin ranked 5th in their "Top 10 Goalies Right Now" list, but not everyone on the network felt he was deserving coming off last season.

"I think he's got still a ceiling he hasn't hit yet," former goaltender Cory Scheider said about his former teammate on a recent broadcast breaking down the Top 10 list. "Some untapped potential and I think he's gonna be motivated this year, coming off a down year for him, to handle that workload and prove that he's the guy we think he is."

Meanwhile, former head coach Bruce Boudreau, most recently with the Vancouver Canucks wasn't ready to rank the 29-year-old in the upper echelon of netminders after an up and down season.

"I think he's way too high, myself ... sorry," proclaimed Boudreau. "His past says he's a great goalie, but I want to see how he bounces back from what I think was a really down year for him, and hopefully the Islanders under Patrick Roy will play a little better defensively."

Expectations were as high as possible for the Isles franchise goaltender after he finished second in Vezina Trophy voting following a dazzling 2023-23 season. Sorokin's performance led to GM Lou Lamoriello signing him to an eight-year contract extension on Jul 1, a contract that was lauded around the league as warranted. He probably has the best lateral movement I've ever seen in person," Schneider said about his former teammate on Long Island. "The way he can get across the crease, his explosiveness. He relies on his hands and body position to get in front of pucks, and he can get to pucks that most guys can't."

Backup Semyon Varlamov became the team's No. 1 down the stretch of the season as Sorokin struggled to find consistency and was the leading force behind the team's surge to the post-season in the final weeks of the season. Varlamov has the trust of Roy, but it will be Sorokin who is given every chance to solidify himself as a franchise goaltender worthy of getting the nod for big games and being viewed as one of the top goaltenders in the NHL.