Varlamov will guard the home crease in Thursday's clash against the Kings, per Stefen Rosner of NHL.com.
While Varlamov is still hunting for his first win of the 2026-27 season, he's held up relatively well across his two appearances thus far. The 18-year NHL veteran currently has an 0-1-1 record, a 1.94 GAA and a .905 save percentage. He's proven to be a more-than-capable backup for Ilya Sorokin moving forward, and the Islanders have publicly affirmed that they want the former to play once every 7-10 days. Varlamov's start Thursday will be his first at home since he missed all of the 2025-26 campaign with a knee injury. His homecoming outing will be against the Kings, who have been inconsistent offensively to begin the new season, making Varlamov a solid spot start in fantasy.