What Happened
The New York Islanders announced Wednesday that defenceman Alexander Romanov has a torn ACL in his right knee and will be out six to eight months. The injury happened in Tuesday's 5-2 loss to the New York Rangers when Romanov collided awkwardly with Rangers centre Mika Zibanejad midway through the third period. The 26-year-old had appeared in all three Islanders games this season, recording no points, a plus-2 rating and an average of 16:34 of ice time.
Key Details
- Romanov will miss six to eight months with a torn ACL in his right knee, per the team.
- The injury occurred Tuesday against the Rangers midway through the third period.
- He collided awkwardly with Rangers centre Mika Zibanejad on the play.
- Romanov, 26, had no points, a plus-2 rating and 16:34 average ice time in three games this season.
- He missed the final five months of 2025-26 with a shoulder injury after a hit by Dallas's Mikko Rantanen.
- He has skated in 18 games since signing an eight-year, $50 million contract in summer 2025.
What It Means
The Islanders lose a top-four defenceman for most of the 2026-27 season, less than a year after committing an eight-year, $50 million contract to him. Romanov had already dealt with a five-month shoulder absence in 2025-26, so the club now faces another extended stretch without him on the blue line.
What's Next
The Islanders will need to cover Romanov's minutes internally or look outside the organization, with no timeline beyond the announced six-to-eight-month recovery window.