Varlamov earns first win after long road back for Islanders

Semyon Varlamov waited long enough.

Nearly two years since previously winning an NHL game, the 38-year-old goalie was mobbed by his New York Islanders teammates after their 4-3 shootout victory at the Nashville Predators on Tuesday, a celebration horning Varlamov's long journey back to the League following double partial knee replacements.

It was Varlamov first win since Nov. 14, 2024, when he made 24 saves in a 5-2 victory at the Vancouver Canucks. It's been so long, only six of his teammates that night are still on the roster. But after the medical marvel proved to Islanders brass in training camp he was physically able to return to the NHL, Varlamov went his first three starts this season without a win, going 0-1-2.

"It's an amazing feeling, a very special moment," Varlamov told reporters after the game. "A year ago, to be honest with you, I didn't see this coming. It was such a grind, like the last two years, to get to this point when you have the opportunity to play and then compete at the highest level in the world. I mean, I'm very thankful for this opportunity."

Perhaps it was fitting Barry Trotz was on hand at Bridgestone Arena, the former Islanders coach now a senior adviser with the Predators, the team he coached from its inception in 1998 until leaving for the Washington Capitals in 2014. He won his first Stanley Cup championship four years later before helping turn the Islanders around over a four-year run (2018-22) that was highlighted by back-to-back trips to the third round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Varlamov won 18 postseason games over those runs in 2020 and 2021.

"When I heard 'Varly' was coming back, to go through what he's going through, I want to say I was like, shocked, but I wasn't -- if you know Varly," Trotz told NHL.com. "He just loves to play.

"… I didn't know much about Varly until we got him (prior to the 2019-20 season), and what a good human. He was the perfect goaltender for when we got (Ilya) Sorokin, and he was a perfect goaltender for our team. He was calm, he was a good person, high work ethic … never too emotional, and always was team-first. And I can see it now that he loves the game."

Former Islanders forward Josh Bailey saw a lot of Varlamov over the past two years, their sons hockey teammates on Long Island. Bailey, also a crucial component of the playoff runs, is thrilled Varlamov was able to make an improbable comeback.

"His attitude was really good that, honestly, you might not even had known (what he was going through)," Bailey said. "He'd show up with a smile on his face. It was probably good last year for him to be able to watch his son play. But he still had that hunger and burning desire inside to get back out there. … Getting to see him play in games now, from a fan's perspective, from a friend's perspective, you're just rooting for him.

"Just knowing what he's gone through and how much hard work and what a great teammate he is -- he's one of those guys you play in front of and you want to get the win for him. You can't say that about every goalie you play with; it doesn't mean you don't like them or whatever, but Varly is just such a good person. He's such a good teammate that he just adds that element too. I can't say enough good things about him."

Peter DeBoer, who is in the midst of his first full season as Islanders coach after being hired with four games left last season, has learned a lot about Varlamov as a player and a person over the past few months. But he admitted after the game Tuesday the organization's uncertainty Varlamov could pull the comeback off, so much so it signed goalie Vitek Vanecek as an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Vanecek was loaned to Hamilton of the American Hockey League once Islanders brass was convinced Varlamov was able to serve as Sorokin's backup.

"Listen, the discussions in the summer, I don't think anyone was sure, because it was such an unheard of comeback with what he had gone through," DeBoer said. "That was the reason we signed the goaltending depth we did, because I don't think anyone was sure.

"Until he got to camp and he started to play, and you talk to him after he scrimmaged or played and he had no ill effects and there was no swelling … none of us went into camp with an easy feeling that we were going to have him for the whole season. We really weren't sure what we were going to get."

Tuesday was Varlamov's fourth start this season; his previous a 3-2 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Kings at UBS Arena on Oct. 22. He entered Tuesday 0-1-2 with a 2.25 goals-against average and .899 save percentage. He helped New York extend another game past regulation and wasn't about to be denied a win again, not after going 712 days without one that included time of serious doubt as to whether he'd ever be able to return. 

His teammates weren't about to deny him, either. Matthew Schaefer, the face of the franchise since being selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, played every second of the extra period, becoming the first skater on record to skate all five minutes of an overtime period (since 2009-10 when real-time time on ice data was officially tracked).

"He's a warrior," Schaefer said. "To see everything he's been through and be able to come back, he looks so good in there. … He's an amazing guy, but he's such an amazing player too."

The Islanders failed to win it on a power play in overtime, but Kyle Palmieri and Bo Horvat scored in the first two rounds of the shootout. Varlamov poke-checked Ryan O'Reilly's attempt away in the first round before Filip Forsberg shot wide. Horvat's goal sparked the wild celebration, teammates jumping up and down around Varlamov.

"It was good to see both guys score in the shootout," Varlamov said. "Very special moment. … Like I've said, I love the game and I wanted to stay in this league longer because I'm just enjoying the process, playing the games, practices, being around the team. When it's over, it's over. You're not part of this league anymore. So, I want to hang out for a little bit longer. The last two years was a real grind. Of course, I went through some tough times, like I felt like I wouldn't be able to be back. You just keep pushing yourself every day a little bit harder and keep doing things that you do and you control.

"It took me a long time. I'm glad this organization, like (general manager) Mathieu Darche and the coaching staff and the ownership give me this opportunity. I'm very thankful and I appreciate that they believe in me and give me this chance. I'm just humbled and very, very thankful."

NHL.com independent correspondent Russell Vannozzi contributed to this story