The New York Islanders have turned a corner on the season with great defense leading the way. They’ve allowed only seven goals in the last six games and are coming off a 3-0 shutout on Jan. 30 against the Philadelphia Flyers. It allowed them to go on a six-game winning streak and leap into fifth place in the Metropolitan Division.
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What makes the stretch all the more impressive is the defense has looked great without Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock, who are both out with injuries. Islanders general manager (GM) Lou Lamoriello brought in Anthony DeAngelo and Scott Perunovich to help out the defense but the whole group has looked great. One of the skaters who has stood out is Alexander Romanov who might get a big payday in the offseason because of the season he’s putting together.
Romanov’s the Top Stay-at-Home Defenseman
Pulock leads the team in defensive point shares with 6.4 and Scott Mayfield is the leader among active skaters with 5.7 but Romanov is the tone-setter on the defensive end. He leads the unit with 92 hits and he’s gotten into the shooting lanes in recent games. On Jan. 28 against the Colorado Avalanche, he blocked four shots in a 5-2 win and five in the latest game against the Flyers.
Every great team needs a stay-at-home defenseman who can take on a surplus of ice time. Romanov’s averaging 22:08 of ice time this season, a career-high, and in the last three games, he’s played 25 minutes or more in each game. Better yet, it’s unfazed him as he’s still playing with that burst of speed and energy that makes him a hard-hitting and turnover-creating blueliner.
The past six games have required Romanov to step up at both ends of the ice. Scoring two goals and adding two assists was a bonus for the offense but his play defensively has allowed the Islanders to go on a run. Romanov’s dominant play has helped them shut down opposing offenses and take over low-scoring games.
Is Romanov a Building Block?
The core for the future, one the Islanders can build around even if they retool, is Mathew Barzal, Bo Horvat, Dobson, and Ilya Sorokin. The question is if they can add Romanov to that group. At this point, he’s proven he is a core piece.
While Dobson is the best two-way defenseman on the Islanders, Romanov is the one they can build around. Like Dobson, he’s 25 and a young skater who will be a part of the roster for years to come. However, he’s the shutdown defenseman who when the Islanders need to win low-scoring games, can lead the way. Romanov’s proved he can be the top defenseman in the recent games and it’s why they might pay him as such.
Romanov’s Value
The salary cap is going up and the market for players around the league will follow suit. The catch is that stay-at-home defensemen don’t take up a lot of the salary cap. Jaccob Slavin signed an extension with a $6.39 million average annual value (AAV) contract while Gustav Forsling is on a deal with a $5.7 million AAV. Romanov isn’t at the same level as those two but those contracts are his ceiling. If the Islanders give him anything, it will likely be less than that.
When the Islanders acquired Romanov in the 2022 offseason, they gave him a $2.5 million AAV bridge deal. The past three seasons proved that the Islanders got a bargain with that contract as he’s been one of their best defensemen and helped them make a push for the playoffs with strong play down the stretch.
He’s a restricted free agent (RFA) this offseason and the Islanders will pay him. The question is what his next contract looks like. At 25, they can give him a long-term deal that keeps him with the team for his prime years but the Islanders have more than enough long-term deals on their roster already. Because of that, the Romanov contract will be in the five-year range (give or take a season or two) at an AAV of around $4-5 million. If they come to terms on a deal like that, the defense is sure to be stable for seasons to come.
Can the Islanders Keep Romanov & Dobson?
The Islanders enter this offseason with Brock Nelson, Kyle Palmieri, Dobson, and Romanov all in need of new contracts. Assuming none of them are traded in the upcoming weeks, Lamoriello must decide which two skaters to keep while letting the other two test out free agency.
Nelson is a franchise staple but ideally, the two the Islanders sign are Dobson and Romanov. It won’t be easy if both skaters demand contracts with an AAV over $5 million but it can happen. Both defensemen are entering their prime and are building blocks for the Islanders both now and in the long run.
Romanov’s great play in the recent games is a reminder that he’s a staple of this defense. It’s also a reminder that the Islanders must pay up in the offseason. He’s not a star and won’t have the flashy numbers that lots of two-way defensemen have but his value to the Islanders is unquestioned.
