DETROIT — The Islanders likely will be dealing with the fallout of Mikko Rantanen’s hit on Alexander Romanov for a while with the defenseman expected to miss a significant amount of time with an upper-body injury.
The immediate results were Adam Boqvist entering Thursday night’s lineup against the Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena and Laurel Hollow’s Marshall Warren being recalled from AHL Bridgeport for his second stint with the Islanders this season. He did not dress as the Islanders concluded a seven-game road trip that started 5-1-0.
“Always being consistent, that’s the biggest thing,” Warren told Newsday of the lessons from his first two NHL games — in which he had two assists — with the Islanders from Oct. 25-28. “You always have to be on your top level. Be consistent mentally, locked in. That was the biggest thing I learned.”
Romanov, who was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday and was in the press box at Little Caesars Arena with his right arm in a sling on Thursday, was hurt late in Tuesday’s 3-2 win in Dallas as Rantanen hit him into the end wall from behind. He drew a five-minute major for boarding and a game misconduct but earned no further NHL discipline while leaving the Islanders, particularly coach Patrick Roy, livid.
Roy appeared to scream at Rantanen from the bench that he would not make it through the teams’ rematch at UBS Arena on March 26.
“I never meant to do that,” Rantanen said on Wednesday, adding that he tried to reach out to Romanov. “I’ve never done that my whole career. I play hard but never try to be dirty on purpose. I got clipped a little bit [by Scott Mayfield] and kept falling forward. An unfortunate moment, but never really meant to do it. Hopefully he’s not too bad.”
Roy said he had no update on Romanov’s status but that there will be more information once he is examined by team doctors on Friday after the Islanders return to Long Island.
As for Rantanen’s explanation, it did not exactly mollify the Islanders.
“I can understand that he’s not that type of player,” Anders Lee said. “But it happened, you know? We’ve got to protect our guys. You have an onus coming in to be as in control as you can. I understand the bump and he was off balance. It’s a bad result.”
“I didn’t see [Rantanen’s explanation],” defenseman Adam Pelech said. “And honestly, I try not to really think about that side of that. It stinks to lose Romy, we don’t know for how long yet. It was ugly. It was tough to watch on the ice. It’s tough to lose him for however long he’s out for.”
Romanov, in the first season of an eight-year, $50 million deal, started slowly this season with one assist in 15 games but had been playing better defensively on the road trip.
The Islanders will miss his imposing physical presence, something the slick-skating Boqvist, a righthander who will play on his off-side, does not bring.
“I don’t think you try to replace [Romanov],” Roy said. “Everybody brings something different and Adam brings something different. He’s a good puck mover, he can jump in the rush and we want him to defend well.”
Boqvist entered Thursday with no points in six games and has yet to play more than three straight games this season.
“It’s frustrating,” he said. “Like everyone, you want to play every night. I’m trying to stay positive and have a good work ethic. Trying to work hard and be a good teammate and when the opportunity comes, I’m ready.”
Warren is a lefthander, so Roy eventually might feel more comfortable with him in the lineup. He has two goals and seven assists in 10 games for Bridgeport in his third season in the Islanders’ organization.
Notes & quotes: No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer confirmed that he’s been added to Team Canada’s International Olympic Committee list of at least 90 players under consideration for February’s Winter Games in Italy, which includes a drug testing protocol. “It’s pretty cool,” Schaefer told Newsday. “You don’t really think about it, though. I’m still just focused on my game and our team here. It’s just extra noise.” . . . Forward Simon Holmstrom returned to the lineup after missing one game because of illness . . . Forwards Max Tsyplakov and Kyle MacLean joined Warren as healthy scratches.
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.