Islanders goaltenders Ilya Sorokin, Semyon Varlamov became first pair of NHL goalies to record shutout in 2023-24 season

The New York Islanders' dynamic duo of Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov achieved a historic milestone in the 2023-24 season. They became the first pair of netminders to record a shutout this season, cementing their place in NHL history with their outstanding performance.

The Islander's duo achieved this outstanding feat with a 2-0 shutout victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday night at the Nationwide Arena. With a strong team defensive effort, Varlamov recorded his 39th career shutout, making 33 saves for the Islanders.

As a goaltender, getting an early feel for the puck and establishing a rhythm is crucial. However, when you face just seven shots over two periods, maintaining your engagement and sharpness can be challenging.

Nevertheless, Sorokin demonstrated no difficulties in this regard. While the talks often center around Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat as the Islanders' most dynamic duo, Sorokin's mastery of shutouts deserves equal recognition.

Ilya Sorokin's shutout percentage

Leading the NHL with six shutouts in the 2022-23 season, Ilya Sorokin has accumulated 17 in his career, surpassing Rick DiPietro for third place in the franchise's all-time list.

What enhances this feat is that he has accomplished it in only 135 career games, maintaining a pace of approximately one shutout every eight games. This places him among the elite company of two top goaltenders in Islanders history: Glenn "Chico" Resch, who leads the list with 25 clean sheets, and Billy Smith, who boasts 22.

Nevertheless, when examining the average number of games between shutouts, Sorokin's pace outshines them both. Over his 282 appearances with the Islanders, Resch averaged more than 11 games between shutouts, while Smith averaged more than 30 games between clean sheets.

Martin Brodeur, the Hall of Fame netminder for the New Jersey Devils, holds the record for the most shutouts by a goalie, with 125, averaging a shutout every 10 games.

Sorokin has quite a journey ahead of him if he aims to match Smith's franchise record of 674 games as the team's goaltender.

If Ilya Sorokin maintains his current pace and reaches Resch's 282 games, his projected shutout total will reach 35, surpassing the franchise record in the same number of games. Although Sorokin's current form falls slightly short of Resch's .557 mark (157 wins in 282 games), it surpasses Smith's .451 percentage.

Given these insights, it's impossible not to recognize Ilya Sorokin for his shutouts.