The New York Islanders and St. Louis Blues are not considered an NHL rivarly.
However, there’s a bit of a rivalry between Ilya Sorokin ( and Jordan Binnington, which is back in action for the first time since November 3, 2022.
On that day, Sorokin stopped 32 of 34 in a 5-2 win, with Binnington singing the Blues after allowing four goals on 29 shots.
But, as usual, Binnington’s focus wasn’t just on stopping the puck.
He lashed out at Islanders’ players a few times, taking his anger out on Sorokin after the second period:
“Oh yeah, it’s funny. I was relaxed,” Ilya Sorokin said postgame.
Earlier in the period, while Islanders captain Anders Lee fought then Blues defenseman Niko Mikkola, Binnington tried to subtly get involved:
“Oh yeah, it’s funny. I was relaxed,” Ilya Sorokin said postgame.
“I think we’ve seen it happen before,” Lee said. “It doesn’t matter who it is. You just got to play through it and can’t get rattled by it.”
Career-wise, Binnington has played very well against the Islanders, sporting a 1.99 GAA and a .927 SV% in seven games.
But he has yet to beat Sorokin in two starts, stopping 43 of 49 (.877 SV%) with a 3.00 GAA.
Sorokin, who has lost his last four starts in search of career win No. 100, fell 1-0 in an overtime shutout loss the last time the Islanders faced the Blues, making 29 saves on 30 shots.
Joel Hofer was in goal for the Blues.
Sorokin is 3-1-1 with a 2.19 GAA and .923 SV% against the Blues in five career starts.
The Islanders enter Saturday night losers of three straight games (0-2-1), while the Blues have also lost three straight (0-2-1).
Let’s see who comes out on top with opening puck drop at 7:30 PM ET in Elmont.
