Alexander Romanov may most likely give Noah Dobson some good recommendation proper about now.
This season has been performed on two tracks for Romanov: one through which he’s additional established himself as a top-pair defenseman for the Islanders and a pivotal piece of their future, no matter which method the franchise goes; and one other through which he’s missed video games over 4 separate stints resulting from upper-body accidents and a one-game sickness absence, coming back from the newest final Saturday.
The short-term excellent news that the Islanders had their prime pair reunited was, after all, undercut by Dobson getting harm one sport later — a presumed proper leg damage that the Islanders designated as week-to-week on Thursday, whereas clarifying that Dobson gained’t want surgical procedure.
“It’s probably the worst [thing] a player can have is injuries,” Romanov stated following Thursday’s follow, reflecting on his personal season. “You’re in shape, you play good, 10 or 11 games at the start of the season, then you get injured. The hardest part, to get injured in the first part of the season, after 10 games, when everyone is starting to roll up. Building team, building chemistry between pairs or lines and you get injured … and you jump back and you have to try to be in the same level as your team. So it’s like waves. You’re in great shape, and then you fall off.”
With the Islanders’ playoff hopes hanging by a thread, Romanov and Scott Mayfield — who will spell Dobson on the highest pair — can be shouldering an enormous burden beginning with Friday’s match at UBS Area towards the Flyers.
Each gamers have put up robust seasons up to now — Mayfield’s resurgence after a brutal 2023-24 marketing campaign is among the extra under-discussed matters across the Islanders — however the two final performed collectively as a pair within the 2022-23 season, and as prime pairs go, it would lack severely for offense. So will the Islanders’ again finish as an entire. With out Dobson, Ryan Pulock is the membership’s solely defenseman who has double-digit factors.
“The key for us right now is just making sure our guys play their way,” coach Patrick Roy stated. “No one is here to replace Noah. Everybody has to play their own game and focus on what needs to be done.”
The excellent news — type of — is that Romanov isn’t apprehensive a few recurrence of his damage.
He clarified Thursday that what’s stored him out this season isn’t the identical shoulder difficulty that required surgical procedure in the course of the summer time of 2023 however an unspecified damaged bone.
“It’s behind me, yeah,” he stated. “For sure.”
Nonetheless, this figures to be a significant take a look at for Romanov and Mayfield.
For all of the discuss on social media criticizing Dobson this season, Romanov has been helped by Dobson simply as a lot as vice versa.
As a pair, the 2 have a 53.14 anticipated targets fee whereas the Islanders have outscored the opposition 20-17 throughout their five-on-five minutes, per Pure Stat Trick.
In 200:21 of ice with out Dobson, Romanov’s anticipated targets fee has dropped to 45.89.
As for Mayfield, he’s spent a lot of the season on the third pair, and 48.82 p.c of his faceoffs have come within the offensive zone. He’s responded to that effectively, however his minutes are about to get a lot much less sheltered.
All issues thought-about, the Islanders, who’ve handled accidents to each different member of their prime 4 this season, are comparatively well-equipped to deal with shedding Dobson.
That doesn’t make it straightforward, nor does it assist that they will’t afford to tread water within the standings. They should make up floor. Now.
“Doesn’t matter who’s hurt,” Romanov stated. “Dobby, of course, is a huge loss for the team and for me as well. But it’s not over, you know. We still keep playing and we still will do as much as we can to win.”
