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Alexander Romanov

Islanders Activate Alexander Romanov, May Recall Calum Ritchie

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6:00 p.m.: Ritchie’s debut with the Islanders will have to wait another day. According to ESPN’s John Buccigross, Ritchie’s flight from Bridgeport to Raleigh was cancelled due to inclement weather. Still, there’s a decent chance that Ritchie will be recalled by the Islanders tomorrow night against the Washington Capitals.

3:57 p.m.: The New York Islanders will have a few additions in their matchup against the Carolina Hurricanes this evening. The Islanders announced that they have activated defenseman Alexander Romanov from injured reserve. Additionally, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that forward prospect Calum Ritchie will be recalled and make his Islanders debut.

Assuming that Friedman’s report is accurate, New York will have to make another corresponding transaction to fit Ritchie into the active roster. Ritchie’s recall, along with Romanov’s activation, would put the Islanders at 22 skaters and two goaltenders, one over the 23-man roster limit.

In all likelihood, New York will likely reassign defenseman Marshall Warren, given that he’s one of only three waiver-exempt players on the team. He’s had a solid debut with the Islanders over the last two games, tallying two assists while averaging 12:08 of ice time.

Meanwhile, Romanov has missed the team’s last five games with an upper-body injury. He was eligible to return last Thursday, although recent reports indicated that Romanov would return to the lineup at some point during the team’s current road trip. In his four games before the injury, Romanov went scoreless while averaging 18:12 of ice time, collecting 12 blocked shots and 15 hits.

The most interesting portion of today’s roster moves is the reasoning behind Ritchie’s recall. According to Ethan Sears of the New York Post, the team is benching Mathew Barzal tonight due to his late arrival to the rink. It’ll be the first game that Barzal has missed this season, and he’s currently second on the team in scoring with two goals and eight points in nine games.

Still, the news is fairly bittersweet given that Ritchie is expected to debut. He’s been dealing with a mild lower-body injury recently, but has scored one goal and three points in three games for the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders. During preseason action, Ritchie tallied one goal and one assist in four games, averaging 15:24 of ice time. He was the main piece acquired last year in the trade that sent Brock Nelson to the Colorado Avalanche, and New York is hopeful that he’ll become a high-scoring fixture in their top-six.

Islanders Notes: Romanov, Injuries, Waivers

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Stefen Rosner, New York Islanders beat reporter, shared several items on the team today. First, Rosner noted this morning that defenseman Alexander Romanov was seen in a red non-contact jersey in practice. Rosner went on to provide an update on several injuries affecting the club: Romanov will be out tomorrow but is expected to play at some point on the team’s road trip, perhaps Thursday in Carolina. Fellow defenseman Scott Mayfield, however, is expected to play tomorrow in Boston despite missing practice. 

Finally, per Rosner, the team will make a gameday decision on 24-year-old rookie defenseman Marshall Warren, who was a great story over the weekend, as the Long Island native made his debut for his hometown team, posting two helpers in what was eventually a shootout loss. Although Adam Boqvist could draw back into the lineup, given Warren’s impressive debut, it will be interesting to see which way Head Coach Patrick Roy goes. 

Elsewhere on the Islanders:

  • The Bridgeport Islanders shared this morning that top prospect Calum Ritchie is day-to-day with a lower body injury. The 20-year-old, acquired from Colorado in the Brock Nelson deal, has scored a goal and an assist in his first two AHL games in Bridgeport. The Islanders will hope Ritchie’s ailment is not serious, as he is a contender for a call-up at some point, and could especially push pending free agent Jean-Gabriel Pageau, as the team looks to the future. 
  • Rosner went on to make another interesting point this afternoon, that the Islanders could be interested in claiming forward Mitchell Chaffee, who was waived earlier today by Tampa Bay. Rosner mentioned that as the club is currently down to 12 forwards, Chaffee, who has connections from the Lightning with new GM Mathieu Darche, could bring some needed depth. At 27, Chaffee is not necessarily in the mold of younger, more intriguing reclamation projects that sometimes hit the waiver wire. However, he posted 12 goals as a regular on the Lightning’s bottom six in 2024-25, and possibly, New York could have interest. 

Islanders Place Alexander Romanov On IR

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According to a team announcement, the New York Islanders have placed defenseman Alexander Romanov on injured reserve with an upper-body injury (retroactive to October 16th). Romanov has missed the Islanders’ past two contests and is eligible for activation tomorrow.

Moving Romanov to the IR gives New York an open roster spot to recall another defenseman. Further, once Marc Gatcomb clears waivers and is reassigned to AHL Bridgeport, or is claimed by another team, they’ll have the cap space to make a pair of recalls. According to PuckPedia, the Islanders currently have approximately $706K in cap space and would have around $1.6MM if Gatcomb clears.

Before suffering the upper-body injury, Romanov had been largely unnoticeable for New York this year. He went scoreless in the team’s first four games with a -3 rating, averaging 18:12 of ice time per game. He had a relatively solid 50.7% CorsiFor% at even strength, though his 85.7% on-ice save percentage at even strength left much to be desired.

Although Romanov is expected to return relatively soon, there has been much speculation on whom the Islanders will eventually recall to replace him. Blueliner Marshall Warren, who’s never debuted in the NHL, is one of the most popular choices, given that he’s scored two goals and five points in four games with AHL Bridgeport.

Meanwhile, Isaiah George’s familiar face has been floated as another potential recall, though he hasn’t gotten off to a particularly positive start in the AHL this season. Further, Cole McWard, who won a Calder Cup with the Abbotsford Canucks last season, has tallied two goals in four games and is another recall candidate.

Metro Injury Notes: Romanov, Gudbranson, Soucy

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Alexander Romanov missed the New York Islanders most recent game against the Ottawa Senators due to an upper-body injury. He’s not expected to miss any more time. According to Andrew Gross of Newsday, Romanov is fully particpating in this morning’s practice, indicating he’ll return tomorrow.

After the Islanders traded Noah Dobson this summer, they were expecting Romanov to shoulder more responsibility on the blueline. The team showed that expectation financially, signing Romanov to an eight-year, $50MM extension, making him their highest-paid defenseman.

Unfortunately, even before the injury, Romanov hasn’t looked like the defensemen the Islanders need him to be. He’s gone scoreless through his first four contests with a -3 rating, averaging 18:12 of ice time per game. He’s shown some early progression in his possession metrics, though his isolated defensive play has been subpar at best with a 85.7% on-ice save percentage at even strength. Still, there’s plenty of time left in the season for Romanov to correct his play, and hopefully being healthy will aid in that effort.

Other injury notes from the Metropolitan Division:

  • The Columbus Blue Jackets could be returning a veteran presence to their blueline relatively soon. Team reporter Jeff Svoboda reported this morning that defenseman Erik Gudbranson is skating with the team this morning, the first time he’s skated since going down with an concussion on October 11th. Still, there may not be much hope he’ll have a lot of staying power in the Blue Jackets lineup. Gudbranson has faced numerous injuries recently, playing only 16 games with Columbus last season.
  • According to Vince Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic, defenseman Carson Soucy shed his no-contact jersey at the New York Rangers’ practice this morning, indicating he’ll be activated off the IR relatively soon. Although he’s eligible to be activated from the IR today, Mercogliano wouldn’t go as far to confirm those are the Rangers intentions. Soucy suffered his injury in the team’s October 11th game against the Pittsburgh Penguins as he awkwardly flew into the boards after attempting to hit Rickard Rakell.

Islanders Sign Alexander Romanov To Eight-Year Extension

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The Islanders are signing RFA defenseman Alexander Romanov to an eight-year, $50MM extension, PuckPedia reports. The deal will carry a cap hit of $6.25MM. The team has since confirmed the deal. He receives no-move protection from 2026-27 through 2029-30 and a 16-team no-trade list from 2029-30 through 2032-33 as part of the deal, per PuckPedia.

Romanov, 25, lands his big payday after taking a three-year, $7.5MM bridge deal from the Isles in 2022. That decision worked out well for him, and he’ll now be one of the team’s most well-compensated defenders through the expiry of his deal following the 2032-33 season.

The 6’1″ lefty has panned out nicely since the Islanders paid a steep acquisition price to land him from the Canadiens at the 2022 draft, parting ways with a pick that was flipped to the Blackhawks for Frank Nazar. He’s coming off his best NHL season yet. While injuries limited him to 64 games, he still produced 20 points for a career-best 0.31 per-game rate and averaged a career-high 22:18 per game.

Romanov always projected as a stout defensive presence; whether he would avoid being too much of an offensive liability to deploy in a top-four role was always the question with his ceiling. He’s answered it now, fitting well in transition despite never being a big-time point producer in his own right. His possession metrics haven’t been particularly impactful one way or another, considering his slightly defensively-oriented deployment, but he’s shown legitimate minute-munching ability while also generating over 200 shot attempts in each of the last four years. He’s also one of the league’s most physically involved defenders, recording 100-plus hits and blocks every year since 2021-22.

There will be a bit of sticker shock on that $6.25MM price tag for a defenseman with an offensive skill set as simple as Romanov’s. Considering the recent comparables set by extensions in the $5MM range for Kevin Bahl and Nicolas Hague, though, it comes across as fair value.

He’ll be a long-term anchor for the Islanders’ left side that still includes Adam Pelech and gained Matthew Schaefer with the first overall pick in last week’s draft. The team has $14.7MM in cap space left this summer with Emil Heineman, Simon Holmstrom, and Maxim Tsyplakov among its notable RFAs still to sign.

Image courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images.

Trade Notes: Rossi, Marchment, Romanov

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In an article by Michael Russo and Joe Smith from The Athletic, which was later confirmed by Patrick Johnston of The Province, there is a growing consensus that the Vancouver Canucks have made a formal offer to the Minnesota Wild for Marco Rossi. While the complete trade offer remains unclear, the trio of writers believes the Canucks proposed the 15th overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft along with a player.

Johnston elaborated in his article stating that it’s unclear whether the player offered to the Wild was a prospect, or one currently rostered with the Canucks. Still, the news confirms that Vancouver is being aggressive in their pursuit of upgrading their second-line center.

While it’s essentially understood that the Canucks and scoring winger Brock Boeser will be parting ways this summer, Vancouver has over $12MM in salary cap space for the offseason. That means the Canucks could comfortably offer Rossi his desired seven-year, $49MM contract, while leaving room for a few further upgrades.

Other trade notes:

  • After signing center Matt Duchene to a new four-year, $18MM contract earlier today, the Dallas Stars only have a projected $455K in salary cap space entering the offseason. Given this, the Stars are looking to move salary off the roster, and forward Mason Marchment has found his name in the center of the rumor mill. According to David Pagnotta of TheFourthPeriod, Dallas is receiving interest in Marchment’s services, particularly from the Toronto Maple Leafs and Utah Mammoth. Marchment already has some familiarity with the Maple Leafs, appearing in four games for the Original Six franchise during the 2019-20 season.
  • In a new report from Stefen Rosner in Responsible Gambling, he suggests that the New York Islanders are garnering trade interest in defenseman Alexander Romanov from the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers. Rosner provided context for the report by stating that he anticipates the Islanders will begin contract negotiations with Romanov in a few weeks. However, he noted that some teams expect these negotiations to take longer since the Islanders also need to sign Noah Dobson, Simon Holmström, and Maxim Tsyplakov, all while managing a cap space of only $21 million.

Metro Notes: Kreider, Ferschweiler, Nikishin, Pelech, Romanov

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Despite being mentioned in trade rumors for much of the season, New York Rangers forward Chris Kreider spent the entire year in the Big Apple. Don’t expect Kreider’s name to disappear from the trade wire as The Fourth Period reports the Rangers will again look to move their veteran sniper this offseason.

He’ll become mildly more tradeable this summer, having two years and $13MM remaining on his contract. Still, factoring in multiple injuries from this season and the declining foot speed, it’s difficult to say how much interest Kreider will generate.

The Rangers will technically have the opportunity to retain salary if they desire, but it’s likely a non-starter from their perspective. As the article in The Fourth Period mentions, the primary reason for moving Kreider is to shed salary in preparation for K’Andre Miller and William Cuylle’s new deals.

Additional happenings from the Metropolitan Division:

  • As the 2024-25 season closes, the pursuit of a new head coach is ramping up for the Philadelphia Flyers. In that vein, Kevin Kurz of The Athletic reports that Pat Ferschweiler, the head coach of the NCAA’s Western Michigan University Broncos, could be on the Flyers’ radar this summer. Ferschweiler has been the Broncos’ head coach for the last four seasons and recently guided the team to its first National Championship in program history. He’s only had one NHL opportunity in his professional coaching career, being the assistant coach for the Detroit Red Wings from 2015-16 to 2018-19.
  • The Carolina Hurricanes should only be a few days away from their top defensive prospect joining the team for their postseason run. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that Alexander Nikishin has officially received approval for his work visa in the United States. That leaves an appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Istanbul on his to-do list before being allowed to play for the Hurricanes. In a perfect world, Carolina would likely want Nikishin to get an NHL game under his belt before the playoffs start, but that’s unlikely to be the case given that their regular season will conclude on April 17.
  • Although the New York Islanders failed to make the playoffs for the second time in four years, they received positive news on the injury front this morning. Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News reported that despite entering concussion protocol after leaving Sunday’s game due to a hit from New Jersey Devils forward Paul Cotter, defenseman Adam Pelech “is fine” and suited up for the Islanders tonight against the Capitals. Pelech is no stranger to injuries, having only appeared in 60 of New York’s 81 contests this season.
  • Unfortunately, not every usual defenseman for the Islanders suited up in tonight’s contest, as the team shared just before puck drop that defenseman Alexander Romanov is out of the lineup due to illness. Depth defender Scott Perunovich is filling the Romanov-sized void this evening. He’s tallied three assists in nine games for the Islanders since being acquired from the St. Louis Blues on January 27th.

Injury Notes: Red Wings, Romanov, Jensen

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The Red Wings lost both defenseman Erik Gustafsson and winger Elmer Söderblom to undisclosed injuries in Tuesday’s loss to the Capitals, and it doesn’t look like they’re getting either back this weekend against Vegas. Neither practiced during today’s session, Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reports. The former could be facing a longer-term absence, head coach Todd McLellan said. That’s not good news for a tumbling Red Wings team, whose playoff hopes are close to evaporating after a 2-8-0 run in their last 10 games. Gustafsson is third in points among defenders with 18, trailing Simon Edvinsson and Moritz Seider. Söderblom, who’s seen time on the top line with Dylan Larkin as of late and has 3-6–9 in 22 games since being recalled in January, is day-to-day. They could be getting veteran defenseman Jeff Petry back in the lineup soon – he’s traveling with the club on their road trip after returning to practice but won’t play this weekend. He’s been out since early January with an undisclosed injury but had just six points in 34 games to begin the year with a minus-seven rating.

More from around the league:

  • Islanders head coach Patrick Roy told reporters he doesn’t expect defenseman Alexander Romanov to draw in against the Canadiens tonight in a game with major postseason implications, per Andrew Gross of Newsday. He’s still dealing with the illness that held him out of Tuesday’s come-from-behind win over the Penguins. The 25-year-old is enjoying a strong season in career-high minutes, posting 4-14–18 with a plus-nine rating while averaging 22:46 per game. New York’s playoff chances could jump to 35% with a regulation win but drop to just 16% with a regulation loss, per MoneyPuck.
  • Senators defenseman Nick Jensen remains unavailable tonight against Colorado, but he practiced with the club anyway, per TSN 1200 Ottawa. The 34-year-old righty will miss his third straight game with a lower-body injury. With the Sens having the first wild card spot in the East all but locked up, Travis Hamonic slides into top-four deployment alongside Thomas Chabot with Jensen out. Acquired from the Capitals in last summer’s Jakob Chychrun trade, Jensen is averaging 20:20 per game in Ottawa and leads the team with a +17 rating.

Metropolitan Notes: Strome, Fitzgerald, Islander Defenders

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Center Dylan Strome is in the lineup tonight after being questionable to play due to sickness, per a team announcement. He was a full participant in today’s morning skate and is centering the team’s top line between Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson.

Despite feeling under the weather, Strome scored Washington’s first goal of the game tonight against the Red Wings. His availability is key for the Capitals as they continue their run towards the top seed in the eastern conference. Strome has been instrumental to the team’s success, registering 65 points in 67 games played. He is set to break his career high of 67 points in a season, which he recorded just last year.

In his last three seasons, he has recorded 71 goals and 197 points and has assisted on many Ovechkin’s goals as the Russian sniper nears the all-time mark.

Elsewhere in the Metro:

  • Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald discussed a scary situation that occurred to his son with his fellow general managers at their annual meetings, per an NHL release. Fitzgerald’s son, Casey Fitzgerald, a defender with Hartford of the AHL, sustained a serious cut to his neck from a skate blade in a game against Providence on Dec. 28. Casey was wearing a neck guard, which is mandated by the AHL, but the skate hit above the guard, and it was very close to being a life-threatening situation. The elder Fitzgerald approved of photos being shown of the wound, acknowledging the photos could serve as a reminder to the seriousness of these gruesome injuries. While the AHL requires cut-resistant equipment, the NHL currently doesn’t have these provisions in place. While Fitzgerald would like to see this change, he is also looking toward even better advancements in protective equipment. He noted that had the skate hit his son’s neck guard, it wouldn’t have prevented the cut from taking place in that particular situation. But better preventative measures, including wider neck straps, could help prevent serious cuts.
  • The Islanders’ Adam Pelech is playing tonight against the Penguins, while defenders Alexander Romanov and Adam Boqvist both missed the contest due to illness, per a team announcement. Pelech was a full participant in the Islanders morning skate on Tuesday after missing Sunday’s contest against the Florida Panthers with a lower-body injury. Coach Patrick Roy noted his return as a huge support for the team. Pelech has recorded 17 assists, 65 blocked shots, and 68 hits through 45 games on the season. With Romanov and Boqvist out, defender Tony DeAngelo is paired with Pelech, and veteran Mike Reilly cracked the lineup for just the 13th time this season.

Metro Notes: Chytil, Kreider, Lizotte, Glass, Romanov, Stillman

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According to Mollie Walker of the New York Post, the New York Rangers will operate without forwards Filip Chytil and Chris Kreider in the lineup tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes. It’ll mark the second straight game without the pair of forwards.

Chytil has missed considerably more than Kreider having been out since New York’s November 14th matchup against the San Jose Sharks. He was reportedly close to a return on November 21st, but the upper-body injury is still afflicting him. He’s scored four goals and nine points in 15 games this season for the Rangers.

Kreider has only missed one game due to his upper-body injury. Through 19 games, he’s scored as many points as Chytil this year, though all in the form of goals. His offensive production has dipped so significantly that the Rangers are reportedly willing to engage interested teams in trade discussions for the veteran scorer.

Other Metro notes:

  • Josh Getzoff, play-by-play commentator of the Pittsburgh Penguins, gave a few injury updates for the team today. Getzoff shares that forward Blake Lizotte, who hasn’t played since November 13th, will be a game-time decision for the team’s game tonight against the Vancouver Canucks. There’s worse news regarding Cody Glass as Getzoff, unfortunately, shares he will miss his ninth straight game with a concussion.
  • Defenseman Alexander Romanov is expected back in the lineup for the New York Islanders this evening. According to line rushes provided by Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News, Romanov took part in line rushes at practice with Noah Dobson on the first defensive unit. He seemingly missed the team’s last game due to the same nagging injury that’s kept him out for much of the regular season.
  • It was a short stay in the NHL for defenseman Riley Stillman. The Carolina Hurricanes announced they’ve reassigned Stillman to their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves, after only one day on the active roster. Carolina may have just used Stillman for another option at practice given that he was quickly recalled and reassigned before the Hurricanes’ next game.

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