Ilya Sorokin will Start in Goal for the New York Islanders on Friday

Ilya Sorokin will start in goal for the New York Islanders on Friday, Andrew Gross of Newsday reports.

Semyon Varlamov was supposed to start Friday versus the Montreal Canadiens, but he will miss the contest due to a non-COVID-19-related illness. The Islanders have recalled Ken Appley from the ECHL to back up Sorokin.

The Islanders will play this game with a heavy heart as former Hall of Famer Mike Bossy passed away from lung cancer earlier in the day. Bossy is considered one of the best goal scorers ever, with 573 goals and 553 assists in 752 regular-season games. Bossy was forced to retire after only 10 NHL seasons due to problems with his back. He retired, averaging 0.762 goals per game, the best in NHL history.

The Islanders playing the Canadiens on Friday in some ways is poetic as Bossy is from Montreal. The Islanders are +162 (-1.5) on the puck line, -166 on the money line, with an over/under of 5.5, over (-124), and under (-102). You can find the bars and props for this game and all others at the FanDuel Sportsbook.