Varlamov made 36 saves in a 4-1 loss to Tampa Bay on Saturday. The fourth goal was an empty-netter.
Varlamov has gone 3-1-1 in five starts over the last three weeks, which is a nice boost after going 0-4-2 in seven outings between Dec. 16- Feb. 22. The Islanders went up 1-0 early in the first period on a fluke deflection before the Lightning got goals from Darren Raddysh and Anthony Cirelli 35 seconds apart to take the lead. Varlamov and the Isles play back-to-back games Monday in Philadelphia and Tuesday at home against Chicago. Both are theoretically winnable games, even for a struggling New York squad. And Varlamov will get one of them.