Per ESPN’s Kevin Weekes, netminder Semyon Varlamov is staying with the New York Islanders after briefly appearing on the free agent market this morning. The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reports it’s a two-year deal. Kevin Kurz of The Athletic reports that the final contract will be a four-year, $11MM contract, paying Varlamov an AAV of $2.75MM per year.
The 35-year-old has spent the past four seasons with New York, originally serving as their starting goaltender before Ilya Sorokin took over the number one role. Now, he’ll serve as an above-average backup to his countryman who signed an eight-year, $66MM extension earlier today. Last season, Varlamov played in 23 games for the Isles, posting a 2.70 GAA with a .913 SV%, numbers that are right in line with his career averages of 2.65 and .916 respectively and are above average for the backup role.
That said, while New York should benefit from an above-average backup for a little while longer, the four-year term certainly raises some eyebrows. The exact structure of the deal is not yet known so it’s unknown if this is a deal that will carry the more punitive 35+ restrictions. And, by the time his contract ends, he’ll be one of the oldest netminders in the league so this is a bit of a leap of faith from the Islanders. However, it allows them to keep a strong tandem intact for the time being, one that they’ll need to lean on as they look to push for a top-three seed in the Metropolitan Division next season.