Ilya Sorokin isn’t challenging Igor Shesterkin’s comparison of their goalie goals. 

In the aftermath of becoming the first goaltender in Rangers history to score Thursday night, Shesterkin said that his goal — unlike Sorokin’s in March 2025 — was an actual one. He actually shot it unlike Sorokin, who benefitted from a pass gone awry. And Sorokin, when asked about his friend becoming the 18th goalie ever to record a goal, agreed. 

“He scored a real goal,” Sorokin, who messaged Shesterkin about it, told The Post’s Ethan Sears on Friday ahead of the Islanders’ home opener Saturday against the Devils. 

With just over two minutes remaining in the third period, and with the Lightning’s net empty, the puck bounced off the boards and went right to Shesterkin. In one smooth motion, he flipped the puck down the ice, and it slid toward an empty Lightning net to accomplish the feat he’d been trying to do in the NHL for years. 

Shesterkin said he couldn’t tell if the puck went in initially. He didn’t know whether he could celebrate. But then nearly half of the Rangers bench jumped onto the ice to celebrate. Shesterkin — who estimated his last goalie goal came in juniors when he was 19 years old — pumped his right arm into the air and the magnitude of the moment settled into place as the Rangers took a four-goal lead in their eventual 5-1 win. 

“It was a great shot, great one-timer,” Sorokin said, “so I’m happy for him. He wanted to score for a long time. So he finally did it. It was a beautiful goal.” 

Sorokin’s goal needed more of a fortunate bounce. After saving a Predators shot, Sorokin watched as Steven Stamkos tried to send the puck back to the point, but it ended up missing a stick and went all the way down the ice.

In the first practice following his NHL debut, 19-year-old rookie Victor Eklund was already in the Islanders’ top six. Pete DeBoer shuffled his lines, and Eklund skated on the left wing of the second unit alongside center Cal Ritchie and Brayden Schenn. 

“Can’t really take it in yet,” Eklund, the Islanders’ first-round pick in 2025, told The Post of the whirlwind from making the team and playing his first game before moving up the lineup. “Still feel like I’m walking on the clouds.” 

DeBoer also had Anthony Duclair, who he bumped up to the second line during Wednesday’s game and referred to as perhaps being their best forward in the opener, skating on the third line and Matias Maccelli on the fourth line — while saying that he’ll use all four lines and needs each to produce offensively. 

“We’re looking for chemistry on all our lines,” DeBoer said. “We’re looking to see what clicks. We’re gonna keep trying things until we get some combinations that feel really good.” 

Defenseman Alexander Romanov told The Post that he thought he played “pretty good for the first game” in his official return — after two exhibitions — following right shoulder surgery last season. DeBoer said that he’s skating well but that improving puck touches would be the best step after missing so much time. … Sorokin, as expected, will start the Islanders’ home opener.