Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin had a career first on Monday. He was named the NHL’s first star of the week after going 3-0-0 with a 1.33 goals-against average and a .953 save percentage in wins over the Avalanche, Flyers and Lightning. He had been named the second- and third-star of the week previously in his career but never No. 1.

The Islanders’ current six-game winning streak doesn’t quite feel like past runs when Sorokin has been the only thing between them and disaster on a nightly basis. The defense in front of him has been strong, particularly a dramatically improved penalty kill.

Simon Holmstrom scored twice and added an assist, and Ilya Sorokin made 30 saves to lead the New York Islanders to a 5-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday night.

PHILADELPHIA -- Ilya Sorokin made 23 saves to help the New York Islanders win their sixth straight game, 3-0 against the Philadelphia Flyers at Wells Fargo Center on Thursday. Simon Holmstrom, Marc Gatcomb and Kyle Palmieri scored for New York (23-20-7), which extended its season-high winning streak and also won its fourth straight on the road.

A few weeks ago, the Eastern Conference Playoff race seemed as crowded as possible. Only a handful of points separated teams in the last few spots from those at the bottom of the conference.

After some struggles to find consistency in the first half of the season, Ilya Sorokin seems back to his elite self.