TORONTO — Semyon Varlamov’s absence, which has so far spanned 16 months and is expected to last through this season, stems from two knee replacement surgeries, Islanders coach Patrick Roy told reporters after Varlamov briefly joined the team for practice Monday.
Varlamov, who had been working on another rink with Pierre Engvall and Alexander Romanov, came over to the main practice rink while the Islanders were stretching and took some shots.
It was the first time he’d been with the team in any capacity during a practice since getting hurt in November 2024.
“It’s great for him,” Roy said. “He’s been working so hard to get where he is. Two knee replacements, come on. It’s not an easy thing for a goaltender, but he’s been here a lot and he’s been doing everything the right way.”
Specific details, such as whether he had the same knee replaced twice and the timing of the surgeries, were not given.
The last time Varlamov spoke to reporters, on breakup day last season, he said he had “a procedure done on my knee in December,” and that he expected to play this season.
The Islanders appeared relatively optimistic about the situation even through July, when David Rittich’s signing was framed as a just-in-case move, but by training camp, it was clear Varlamov would not be back anytime soon.
General manager Mathieu Darche confirmed the obvious at the trade deadline, saying Varlamov wouldn’t play this season.
Still, he’s continued to rehab, presumably with the goal of playing next season.
If Varlamov can somehow return to the NHL after two major surgeries and nearly two years of rehab, it would be nothing short of incredible.
“Everything he does has been to get back into action,” Mat Barzal told reporters. “He’s one of the last guys in here, stretching upstairs, working on his knee. I was there with him last year. We both got surgery around the same time.
“The commitment that he was putting in to try to get back every day, there was never a moment of, ‘I’m not gonna play again.’ It was always, ‘When am I gonna play,’ that kind of thing.”
Max Shabanov missed practice and is day-to-day with a lower-body injury.
Ilya Sorokin will start in net Tuesday night against the Maple Leafs.
