You may be asking, what do Ilya Sorokin and Carter Hart have in common and why is this something to worry about? Well, they each made an immediate impact on their respective teams in their rookie seasons. The two young goaltenders took the league by storm and made themselves known in the NHL. They have both become important factors for their teams; however, Carter Hart has not played up to his rookie year this season. Is this something to worry about with Sorokin in the future? And if so, how can Ilya Sorokin avoid it?

Let’s start at the beginning of Hart’s career in the NHL. When Carter Hart first entered the NHL, he set the league on fire. He is the youngest goaltender in Flyers history to record a win and was the rookie of the month in January 2019. He was also the 21st goaltender to record an eight-game win streak in their rookie season. Hart recorded a 2.83 GAA and .913 SV%. He was going to be the savior for Flyers fans as their goalie for years to come.

Yet this year, he has been nothing but a disappointment for Philadelphia. Coming off a strong 2020 season, in which he took the Flyers to the Eastern Conference Semifinals, NHL experts alike were expecting Hart to be a Vezina finalist. Carter Hart so far in the 2021 season has recorded a 3.92 GAA and a .871 SV%. The odds are he won’t be a Vezina finalist this year. He has struggled with a very poor Flyers defense and a lack of confidence. Hart has started 23 games this season and has been thrust out into playing each day and progressively has lost his confidence and his ability to stop the puck.

Carter Hart letting in a late third-period goal to Oliver Wahlstrom on March 18.Now you may be asking, what does this have to do with Ilya Sorokin? While Sorokin originally struggled in his first start, he eventually caught fire winning eight straight. In 2021, Sorokin has recorded a 2.21 GAA and a .914 SV%. Pretty similar to Carter Hart’s numbers in his rookie season. They are different goalies in different systems, but this has become a trend with young goalies around the league. Being dominant in their first season, then struggling after that.

Though, there are easy ways to avoid this happening to the Islanders’ young goaltender. The first one is to have a reliable and good number two goalie. That will put less pressure on Sorokin and allow him to rest and reset if he goes on a bad stretch and needs a break, while also keeping the team competitive. That is what has hurt the Flyers and Hart this season. The second way is for Barry Trotz to keep the same defensive system in front of Sorokin. This will help Sorokin have an easier time in net and bail him out when he is not at his best.

Sorokin’s trajectory is something to be a little bit concerned about, considering the trend with young goalies around the league. But if Sorokin does have a reliable backup and a solid defense in front of him, he will be very successful for the Islanders. But for now. all we can do as Islanders fans is hope for the best for our young Russian star.

Jack Kobil

Hi, my name is Jack Kobil. I am currently attending Woodrow Wilson High School in Washington DC. I am a huge Islanders fan and I love to share my passion for this team.