The twists and turns of NY Islanders' goaltender Ilya Sorokin's injury saga

New York Islanders fans breathed a momentary sigh of relief. Islanders’ GM Lou Lamoriello recently spoke to the media, providing an update on the Ilya Sorokin injury situation.

According to The Hockey News, Lamoriello had this to say about Sorokin’s current status:

“He had a little injury during summer training. He is skating, but there’s nothing we are concerned about.”

The positive news comes amid a whirlwind of rumors and speculation. The rumor mill regarding Sorokin’s injury picked up last week when the Isles announced the signing of veteran netminder Keith Kinkaid to a PTO.

Given Lamoriello’s update, Kinkaid’s signing is insurance, just in case Sorokin may not be fully ready for opening night, or so that's the message.

As for missing any time, Lamoriello had this to say:

“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.”

Ultimately, it seems the training staff will determine the extent to which Sorokin may need to sit at the start of camp. But if fans are worried about Sorokin being out for an extended period, Lamoriello offered some reassurance by describing Sorokin as follows:

“This is someone who is extremely comfortable in his own skin, mentally tough and like Varly, players love to play in front of them. He’s a confident individual.”

It remains to be seen how long Sorokin is out of action, at least according to Lamoriello. Hopefully, it won’t be any longer than originally anticipated. However, further developments cast even more doubt on Sorokin's current injury situation.

Patrick Roy revealed Ilya Sorokin had offseason back surgery

The momentary sigh of relief turned into a silent gasp for air when Patrick Roy inadvertently let the cat out of the bag.

NHL.com quoted Patrick Roy, stating that Ilya Sorokin could miss some time at training camp due to offseason back surgery.

Cue the gasp.

A couple of days ago, Lamoriello told the media Sorokin was dealing with an upper-body injury suffered during the summer. Now, Roy slipped up and revealed that Sorokin had surgery.

There’s a huge difference between pulling a muscle while lifting weights and going under the knife. As the NY Post reported, Roy did not offer any more insights into his comments as a team spokesperson cut him off.

While Roy confirmed Sorokin was fine and should not expect any lingering issues, the fact of the matter is that the comments set off all sorts of alarm sirens.

How serious was the surgery?

Could the injury affect Sorokin’s performance?

What exactly was the procedure?

In all likelihood, the Isles and the Sorokin camp wanted to get the surgery, whatever it was, out of the way before training camp. The issue is the way Lamoriello and the Isles have handled the situation. Keeping fans and the media in the dark isn’t exactly the best way to build trust.