The Islanders are set for another year of a tandem in the crease.  The German-born Thomas Greiss returns for his fifth season on Long Island, and the Russian-born Semyon Varlamov is playing his first season in the blue and orange.  Both have had long careers filled with high and low points.  How they’ll fare this year remains to be seen, but the past his history worth recording.
Greiss began his NHL career in California with the San Jose Sharks, making his NHL debut in 2008.  After four years serving as the backup to goalies Evgeni Nabakov and Antti Niemi, Greiss was released by thr Sharks and signed with the Coyotes.  Despite going only 10-8-5, he had great preipheral stats, recording a 2.25 GAA and a .920 save percentage.

Phoenix, however, chose not to resign Greiss and he signed a one-year contract with Pittsburgh before the 2014-2015 season.  Backing up Marc-Andre Fleury, he played only 20 games and posted a .908 save percentage to go along with a 2.59 GAA.
A free-agent after finishing the year in Pittsburgh, Greiss signed with the New York Islanders.  He started in a tandem with Jaroslav Halak, but after a late season injury forced the Isles starter to miss significant time, Greiss took control of the crease and led the Islanders to their first playoff series win in 23 years.

The next two years after that were hard for Greiss as he regressed tremendously.  After a slow start in 2016-17, Greiss rebounded to finish strong under then head coach Doug Weight, but it was too little too late and the Islanders missed the playoffs by a point.  Then, he had his worst season on record, posting a 3.82 GAA and a .892 save percentage in only 27 games.
Still, Greiss found his game again.  Last year playing in tandem with Robin Lehner, he was awarded the William M. Jennings Trophy after posting a 2.28 GAA and .927 save percentage in 43 games, his best stats in his career.

At his best, Griess is a 1A. He’s more than capable of playing 40-50 games and posting above average peripherals and lead his team to the playoffs.  However, too much playing time or when he has to be counted on too much can result in the exact opposite effect.  That’s presumably why management elected to find another 1B who can split the crease with Griess.
That 1B is Semyon Varlamov.  He rose to a starting role much faster than Greiss.  He was selected 26th overall in 2006 by the Washington Capitals.  He broke into the league in 2009, serving as Jose Theodore’s backup.  When Theodore struggled early in the playoffs, Varlamov came in to replace him, carrying the Caps to the second round for the first time since 1998.

In 2012, Varlamov was traded to the Avalanche as Braden Holtby emerged as the next starting goalie for Washington.  After a tough 2012-2013 season, he rebounded for his best season on record.  In 2014-2015, he won 41 games and propelled the Avalanche to the top spot in the division before being ousted in the first round by the Minnesota Wild.

Afterwards, injuries and poor defensive play led to inconsistencies in his game and his eventual replacement as the bonafide starter by Philip Grubauer two seasons ago.  Still, especially in 2017-2018, he’s proven that he’s still capable of pulling together an above average season and helping his team reach the playoffs.
For the first time since his rookie year in Washington, Varlamov enters the season knowing that he will be sharing the net with someone else, and that should help him.  Especially with a great defensive system in front of him, Varlamov can win 20+ games and post a .915 save percentage or higher sharing the crease with Greiss.  Injuries or inconsistency can see those number fall, as they have in the past.

The Islanders would love to catch lightning in a bottle twice, and again find a way to use their strong defensive system to the benefit of their goaltenders.  Both have shown flashes of brilliance in their careers and the Islanders want to make the most of their men between the pipes this season and beyond.

Ben Baruch

Born and raised on Long Island. Isles fan since 2009. Studying journalism at the University of Maryland, College Park.