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Varlamov will guard the home crease in Thursday's clash against the Kings, per Stefen Rosner of NHL.com.
While Varlamov is still hunting for his first win of the 2026-27 season, he's held up relatively well across his two appearances thus far. The 18-year NHL veteran currently has an 0-1-1 record, a 1.94 GAA and a .905 save percentage. He's proven to be a more-than-capable backup for Ilya Sorokin moving forward, and the Islanders have publicly affirmed that they want the former to play once every 7-10 days. Varlamov's start Thursday will be his first at home since he missed all of the 2025-26 campaign with a knee injury. His homecoming outing will be against the Kings, who have been inconsistent offensively to begin the new season, making Varlamov a solid spot start in fantasy.
Palat scored a goal and added two PIM in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Ducks.
Palat saw a season-high 14:47 of ice time Tuesday. He's in line for a little more usage in the absences of Mathew Barzal (knee), Matias Maccelli (lower body) and Calum Ritchie (lower body). Palat has earned three points, 10 shots on net, 18 hits, seven blocked shots and a plus-3 rating over nine contests so far.
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Islanders' Victor Eklund: Tallies in Tuesday's win
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Eklund scored a goal on four shots and added two hits in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Ducks.
Eklund ended a six-game point drought with his first-period goal Tuesday. The 20-year-old winger is still adjusting to the NHL, and while he remains on the second line on paper, his ice time has been under 15 minutes in all but one contest. He's at three points, 12 shots on net, 19 hits, eight PIM and a plus-1 rating over nine appearances.
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Islanders' Simon Holmstrom: Pots game-winner on power play
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Holmstrom scored a power-play goal that proved to be the game-winner in Tuesday's 3-2 victory over the Ducks.
The 25-year-old winger got his stick on a Matthew Schaefer point shot and deflected it past Lukas Dostal late in the first period, giving the Islanders a 3-1 lead they wouldn't relinquish. It was Holmstrom's first power-play goal and second GWG of the season, and three of his four tallies to begin the campaign have come in the last two games as he skates on the top line with Bo Horvat and Kyle Palmieri. If he can maintain those prime spots at even strength and with the man advantage, Holmstrom should be able to top his career highs in goals (20) and points (45), set over 75 regular-season contests in 2024-25.
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Islanders' Ilya Sorokin: Not busy in fifth win
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Sorokin stopped 15 shots in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Ducks.
While he didn't face a lot of rubber, Sorokin came up big when he needed to, and both goals against him came when his defense allowed clean looks from in close. The 31-year-old netminder has won three straight starts, and through seven appearances to begin the season he's gone 5-2-0 with a stellar 1.72 GAA and .934 save percentage.
Sorokin will get the starting nod at home versus the Ducks on Tuesday, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports.
Sorokin has allowed two or fewer goals in four of his last five outings, posting a 4-1-0 record, 1.60 GAA and one shutout. Even with no back-to-backs on the short-term schedule, the team has outlined plans to give Semyon Varlamov at least one start a week, which means Sorokin may get the night off either against the Kings on Thursday or the Stars on Sunday.
Ritchie (lower body) will be out of action for 4-6 weeks, the team announced Monday.
Ritchie is currently mired in a five-game pointless streak during which he has generated four blocks, two shots and two PIM while averaging 10:38 of ice time. With the 21-year-old forward sidelined long-term, he likely will be placed on injured reserve in the coming days to free up a roster spot. For now, Mitchell Chaffee could get an extended run at the NHL level with both Ritchie and Matias Maccelli (lower body) dealing with injuries.
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Islanders' Matias Maccelli: Out 2-4 weeks
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Maccelli (lower body) will miss the next 2-4 weeks, the team announced Monday.
Maccelli suffered a lower-body injury in Saturday's 4-1 win over Toronto. He has contributed two goals, six points and 13 shots on net in eight appearances with the Islanders this season.
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Islanders' Matias Maccelli: Set to miss one week
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Maccelli (lower body) will not be an option for the Islanders' next three contests, Andrew Gross of Newsday reports Monday.
Maccelli was riding a five-game point streak before he was injured in Saturday's clash with the Maple Leafs. Last season, the 26-year-old winger registered 14 goals and 25 helpers in 71 regular-season games, just missing the 40-point mark. Barring an extended stint on the shelf, Maccelli should be capable of challenging that threshold again in 2026-27.
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Islanders' Calum Ritchie: Won't play this week
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Head coach Pete DeBoer said Monday that Ritchie (lower body) won't play this week, Andrew Gross of Newsday reports.
Ritchie sustained a lower-body injury during Saturday's matchup against Toronto, and he's facing a multi-game absence. Matias Maccelli (lower body) has also been ruled out this week, so Kyle MacLean and Mitchell Chaffee will likely have opportunities to step up for the Islanders over the next few games.
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Islanders' Alexander Romanov: Shifts to IR
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Romanov (knee) was placed on injured reserve Monday.
Romanov's placement on injured reserve shouldn't come as a surprise, considering the defenseman is not expected back until mid-April at the earliest. With Matias Maccelli (lower body) and Calum Ritchie (lower body) both dealing with injuries, the Isles used the open roster spot from Romanov's IR placement to bring up Mitchell Chaffee.
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Islanders' Mitchell Chaffee: Elevated from minors
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Chaffee was recalled from AHL Hamilton on Monday.
Chaffee is off to a strong start in the minors, racking up four goals and two assists through six minor-league games with the Hammers. As such, the 28-year-old winger seems to have earned his promotion to the big club. In a corresponding move, the Isles put Alexander Romanov (knee) on injured reserve.
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Islanders' Malte Gustafsson: Mixed results early in SHL season
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Gustafsson has four assists and a minus-8 rating over 10 games with HV71 of the SHL to begin the 2026-27 season.
Notably, Gustafsson has already surpassed his point total from 27 regular-season games in 2025-26 (three assists). That shows growth for the 18-year-old defenseman, who is getting tested in a men's league for the second year in a row. His long-term value will be in his shutdown work, not his offense, which could lead to him being a decent option in banger leagues in a few years.
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Islanders' Ilya Sorokin: Cream always rises to top
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Sorokin made 26 saves in a 4-1 victory over the Maple Leafs on Saturday.
Sorokin was strong when he needed to be, and his defense did an outstanding job in keeping lanes open and the Leafs to the outside. He was especially strong in the third when Toronto outshot New York 13-3. Sorokin is 4-2-0 in six starts this season. His .940 save percentage is fourth-best in the NHL, and his 1.68 GAA is fifth. He's long been the third wheel in the discussion of the best Russian goalie in the NHL. But this could be the season Sorokin rises to the top given Igor Shesterkin's (lower body) injury and Andrei Vasilevskiy's sluggish start.
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Islanders' Anthony Duclair: Smart goal in win
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Duclair scored a goal in Saturday's 4-1 win over Toronto.
It was a goal scorer's goal. Duclair changed the angle in the slot and caught Sergei Bobrovsky moving his feet as he went back across his body with the shot. Duclair is toiling on the Isles third line, and he has two goals on nine shots in eight games this season. But both Calum Ritchie (lower body) and Matias Maccelli (lower body) left Saturday's game early, and the team may need a guy with Duclair's talent to step up the lineup if either of those forwards is out long.
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Islanders' Simon Holmstrom: Two goals as ice time spikes
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Holmstrom scored two goals Saturday in a 4-1 victory over the Maple Leafs.
He fired two shots and finished plus-3, and played Mr. Versatility when two Islanders forwards were lost early to injury. Holmstrom's ice time ballooned to 20:01 from a season average of 16:26. And his first goal came while filling a spot alongside Bo Horvat in the top six. His second was an empty netter, as he was once again trusted to be on the ice late to help preserve the lead. Holmstrom may be a wise waiver pickup if both Calum Ritchie (lower body) and Matias Maccelli (lower body) are out for any length of time. He has delivered at least 41 points in two straight seasons, and he has 39 goals in that span.
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