Islanders Goalie Illya Sorokin Completes Play You Hardly Ever See In The NHL

New York Islanders goalie Illya Sorokin did something that you rarely see in an NHL game.

The final seconds of a home matchup against the Nashville Predators were slowly ticking off the clock, and the Islanders had a 6-4 lead. Because Nashville was pressing for a miracle comeback, they had pulled their goalie in favor of getting another forward on the ice. Keep that in mind.

ELMONT, NY - Ilya Sorokin of the New York Islanders looks on against the Carolina Hurricanes in Game Six of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at UBS Arena on April 28, 2023. (Photo by Mike Stobe/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Predators were able to get a shot on Sorokin, but he kicked the puck out of the net twice in quick succession. Unfortunately for the Islanders, the Predators were able to control both rebounds and get the pick.

That’s when the weirdness kicked in. Steven Stamkos tried to pass to the point, but he had to watch helplessly as the puck missed his teammate and trickled all the way down into his goalie-less net. The comeback attempt was officially over.

Now if this were soccer, they would count that as an own goal on Stamkos. But thank goodness this isn’t soccer. 

One of hockey’s strange rules is that in a situation like that, the last player on the scoring team to touch the puck gets credit for the goal. That means that Sorokin - without shooting the puck - gets credit for the seventh goal. To add to the craziness, it was an unassisted goal too.

While it’s not the first time that a goalie got credit for a goal because of a similar situation, it's still not something you see every day. Plus, it was Sorokin’s first career goal, so that makes it extra special.

What a moment to remember for him, and a moment to forget for Stamkos.