New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin (30) looks up after Colorado Avalanche’s Cale Makar (8) scored a goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
ELMONT, N.Y. — No smorgasbord of showstopping saves from Ilya Sorokin can stop the leaking of the New York Islanders’ defense.
The normally staunch unit has been ripped open for 15 goals in their last three games, headlined by a 7-4 loss on Tuesday night against the Colorado Avalanche in which they allowed 40 shots on Sorokin’s goal — five beating him — before a pair of empty-netters in the final minute of regulation iced things.
“We still have to clean it up,” defenseman Ryan Pulock said. “I think a couple of little mistakes ended up in the back of the net… Whenever we made little errors on coming back into the D-zone, it seemed like they were able to capitalize on it.”
But the mistakes seem to wide-ranging, which has led to an abundance of shots making their way toward goal. After holding the Arizona Coyotes to just 14 shots on Oct. 17, the Islanders allowed 39 shots in a 5-4 loss to the New Jersey Devils, 43 shots in a 3-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday, and 41 shots to the Avalanche.
“There’s a little bit of both and the individual mistakes are within the structure,” head coach Lane Lambert said. “So the structure breaks down when individual mistakes are made. But at the end of the day, we have to move forward and practice and we’ll get back to work.”
Four of Colorado’s first five goals came via even-strength with the only theme being that defenseman Adam Pelech was on the ice for each of them.
In a 1-1 game in the first period, Avalanche star defenseman Cale Makar blew past three Islanders, including Pulock, to roof a backhander over Sorokin.
The Islanders battled back with two second-period goals to take the lead, but a 13.2-second lapse in the final minute of that stanza put…
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