New York Islanders defenseman Alexander Romanov will miss six to eight months after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, as reported by La Presse.
Mayfield Returns as Stanley and DeAngelo Gain Minutes
- Depth Chart Reshuffle: Scott Mayfield is expected to re-enter the active lineup, while Logan Stanley and Tony DeAngelo take on heavier minutes in the top-four rotation.
The Collision That Altered the Islanders’ Blue-Line
The sequence unfolded during the third period of the rivalry matchup against the Rangers. Romanov became entangled with forward Mika Zibanejad behind his own net while battling for a loose puck. He was forced to exit the contest immediately, missing the final 12 minutes of regulation. Medical evaluations the following day confirmed the worst-case scenario: a complete anterior cruciate ligament tear requiring major reconstructive surgery.
Romanov was slotted into a crucial top-four pairing alongside Ryan Pulock, operating just behind the defensive anchors Adam Pelech and Matthew Schaefer. Head coach Peter DeBoer now faces a monumental tactical challenge in stabilizing a defensive corps where only Pelech and Schaefer have consistently logged more than 20 minutes of average time on ice per night.
A Brutal Second Season-Ender
This devastating setback marks the second straight year that Romanov’s campaign has been prematurely gutted by a major injury. In November of the previous season, a high-impact collision with Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen resulted in a severe right shoulder injury that sidelined him for five months, limiting him to just 15 total appearances during the 2025-26 campaign.
Prior to going down, Romanov had managed just three appearances in the early weeks of the 2026-27 schedule, maintaining a plus-2 rating while slowly rounding into peak form. His absence strains a long-term investment that dates back to the summer of 2025, when the organization locked him into an eight-year, $50 million contract extension, which runs through the 2032-33 season at a value of $6.25 million per year.
| Season | Team | Games Played | Points | Plus/Minus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-24 | New York Islanders | 81 | 22 | +23 |
| 2025-26 | New York Islanders | 15 | – | – |
| 2026-27 | New York Islanders | 3 | – | +2 |
Defenseman Moves from Montreal to Long Island
Originally selected 38th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the second round of the 2018 NHL Draft, the 6-foot-1-inch Moscow native crossed the Atlantic after seasoning in the KHL with CSKA Moscow. He joined the NHL in 2020-21 with Montreal before being traded to Long Island in July 2022, where he quickly evolved into an indispensable physical pillar, highlighted by a stellar 2023-24 campaign where he dressed for 81 games, notched 22 points, and registered a dominant plus-23 rating. In his NHL career, the defenseman has totaled 372 games, 17 goals, and 67 assists for 84 points.
The front office must now evaluate internal organizational depth or scour the trade market to plug the gap left by their marquee defender.
Next on the Schedule
The Islanders will return to action on Thursday night when they visit the Blackhawks in Chicago.
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