It wasn't a busy night for Sorokin, who earned his sixth start of the season and improved his record to 3-2-1, but the Russian rookie was clutch when the Islanders needed him to be. Not only were Sorokin's saves timely, but the 25-year-old showcased his quick reflexes and elastic-like agility.
The Sabres tested him with a promising three-on-two rush, shortly after Beauvillier's goal and amidst an overwhelming push in the final two minutes of the second period, but Sorokin gloved the attempt.
With Hall's goal, Sorokin's shutout streak ended at 143:08 (he recorded two consecutive shutouts vs Buffalo on Feb. 16 and against Pittsburgh on Feb. 28), which is the third-longest for a rookie netminder in franchise history.
Even after facing only 11 shots through 40 minutes of play, and 18 shots come the final buzzer, Sorokin kept the Islanders in the game in the third period despite his light workload.
"I'm not a goalie, but I'm sure it's tough when you're getting a lot of rubber to stay in it," Eberle said of Sorokin's game. "You can tell, he made some big saves when he needed to. It's nice to have confidence in the one-two punch out there and it makes our job easier if something goes wrong. Obviously, he's playing well, [Varlamov] is playing well and we're just trying to defend as much as we can for them."