Semyon Varlamov, who recently had two partial knee replacements deemed unconventional for professional hockey players, surprised everyone by returning to the ice with the New York Islanders during training camp. Despite no precedent of NHL players successfully resuming their careers after such surgeries, Varlamov, driven by his passion for the game and desire to be part of a promising team, pursued an uncertain comeback that could extend his career. His return has captured the attention and admiration of teammates and coaches, who view it as inspiring and unprecedented in hockey history.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-18,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
After Semyon Varlamov underwent two partial knee replacements, Ilya Sorokin had the same question for him as everybody else.
asserted
Sorokin → undergo → everybody
“I asked him, ‘What do you think?
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you → ask → What
It’s done?’ ” Sorokin recalled Thursday.
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Sorokin → do → ?
“He said, ‘No, I will come back.’
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I → say → ?
First thing he said.”
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he → say → ?
Somehow, some way, Varlamov looks on track to resume playing hockey games this season.
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Varlamov → look → games
He took the ice Thursday as the Islanders opened training camp, and if you didn’t know any better, you would have been unable to tell what he’d been through over the 22 months that have elapsed since he last took part in an NHL practice or game.
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he → take → practice
Varlamov never had a timeline for his return.
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Varlamov → have → return
As far as he knows, there’s no precedent for what he’s doing.
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he → know → what
Research by The Post turned up one professional athlete to undergo a partial knee replacement and return to competing at an elite level: Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn.
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Research → turn → Vonn
As for NHLers or professional athletes in team sports, we could find no comparable examples.
uncertain
we → find → examples
“The type of surgeries I’ve done, people [are] doing it, but not professional hockey players able to do it and try to come back,” Varlamov said.
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Varlamov → do → it
I took a risk.”
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I → take → risk
A risk that might give him his career back.
uncertain
that → give → career
“I wasn’t ready to retire,” Varlamov said.
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Varlamov → retire → ?
Definitely, some days it was in my mind when things were not going well.
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things → go → mind
Rehab, we had a lot of setbacks, pushbacks.
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we → have → setbacks
I was thinking, maybe this is it, I won’t be able to come back.
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I → think → ?
But you wake up the next morning and just tell yourself that you’re not ready to retire.
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you → wake → yourself
I’m not there yet, I guess.
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I → ’m → ?
“I still have a lot of respect and love for the game.
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I → have → game
I want to be around this team.
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I → want → team
This team is looking great with the younger guys now coming in, older guys.
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guys → look → ?
I pushed myself.
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I → push → myself
I had a lot of motivation also, because the team is looking good.
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team → have → motivation
I want to be part of it longer.”
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I → want → it
On a practical, hockey level, the implications for the Islanders are hard to fully unpack.
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implications → unpack → Islanders
General manager Mathieu Darche acknowledged that keeping three goaltenders on the active roster is a possibility, with Vitek Vanecek under contract, as well as Sorokin and Varlamov.
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keeping → acknowledge → contract
Coach Pete DeBoer said that with an 84-game schedule, the Islanders will want close to 30 games from their backup goaltender, and given the club’s history of overusing Sorokin, they ought to be wary about doing so again.
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they → say → Sorokin
The nature of what Varlamov is trying to do makes it impossible to predict how this will go.
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this → try → what
One thing is obvious from Thursday, though: The Islanders, as an organization, are in a little bit of awe over the fact that he has gotten this far.
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he → get → fact
“It’s almost inspiring to our guys,” Darche said.
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Darche → ’ → guys
“When I got here and I heard about the surgery he had undergone, I was not counting on seeing him at all,” DeBoer said.
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DeBoer → get → him
“I wanna say he’s probably the first in history to do it,” JG Pageau told The Post.
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Pageau → say → Post
“That’s pretty cool, and it’s all in his honor to be able to do that.”
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it → ’ → that
Varlamov needs to get through camp and the preseason with no setbacks.
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Varlamov → need → setbacks
If he does make it as far as a regular-season game, every period will be a test.
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period → make → game
But he has come so far already.
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he → come → ?
It took until the beginning of March for him to truly feel he would have a chance to play.
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he → take → chance
He upped his skating from three times a week to four or five, successfully pushing to get into a couple of AHL games at the end of Bridgeport’s season — a massive, confidence-boosting step.
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He → up → season
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
