Monday marked another turn in defenseman Marshall Warren’s yo-yo season. The Laurel Hollow product was returned to the Islanders’ AHL affiliate in Bridgeport after his second NHL stint this season consisted of three games as a healthy scratch.
Yet if it was a minor transaction with regard to the Islanders’ lineup, it may signal some future major implications.
Injuries to defenseman Alexander Romanov, likely out for the season, and third-line center Jean-Gabriel Pageau mean first-year general manager Mathieu Darche has some roster reconstruction to do, though it’s not likely before the Islanders next face the Bruins on Wednesday night at UBS Arena.
Sending Warren back to Bridgeport without a corresponding move shows the Islanders are accruing every dollar possible against the salary cap in preparation for potential future moves.
Not convinced? Here was coach Patrick Roy speaking about former seventh defenseman Adam Boqvist, for now moving to his off-side to take the left-shooting Romanov’s spot on a third pair with righthander Scott Mayfield.
“You hope the guys coming in will fit in and hopefully that Boqvy will play like he’s been playing,” Roy said. “It’s an opportunity for him and he needs to take advantage of it. And we’ll see what Mathieu decides.”
Adam Boqvist of the New York Islanders against the Detroit Red Wings at UBS Arena on Oct. 23, 2025. Credit: Jim McIsaac
This was said before Darche decided to return Warren to Bridgeport. Warren, 24, who is lefthanded, has two assists in two games for the Islanders in his two stints in the last two months.
Boqvist, just 25 but who already has played for Chicago, the Blue Jackets and the Panthers, is a very different player from the physical Romanov.
“He’s a puck-mover,” Roy said. “He’s a guy that supports the rush. So what we want to see is him continue to do that. But we also want to make sure he defends well. Good squeeze on the entry. Using his speed to his advantage. Being able to take hits and being able to make plays under pressure, that’s something we’re going to want to see him continue to do well.”
But Boqvist’s limited ice time in Sunday’s 1-0 shootout win over the Kraken — he logged 10:16, the lowest among the defensemen and just slightly more than fourth-liners Anthony Duclair and Max Tsyplakov — shows that Roy does not completely trust him yet in crucial situations. The defense pairs rotated throughout the game as Boqvist was routinely skipped on shifts.
So yes, defense depth is suddenly of major concern for the Islanders with Romanov facing another surgery on the shoulder that first went under the knife in 2023. The Islanders announced that he will miss five to six months. In other words, at best, he might be available if the Islanders make the playoffs.
To be fair, defense depth already was an issue, albeit to a somewhat lesser degree. Right-shooting Tony DeAngelo played less than 14 minutes in three of the first four games on the Islanders’ recent seven-game road trip.
It’s all balanced by the play of No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer, who logged 27:23 against the Kraken with four shots on goal and nine shot attempts.
“It’s probably one of the better games for Schaefer since he’s been here,” Roy said.
But Roy can’t keep throwing Schaefer, Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock over the boards for shift after shift without some negative wear and tear, even considering Schaefer’s youth.
Darche simply has to make a move to bolster the defense, and it’s not clear whether recalling one of Warren’s Bridgeport teammates, be it Cole McWard, Isaiah George or Travis Mitchell, would be a sufficient answer.
But Darche’s ability to make a trade is made harder by Pageau’s injury and the potential need to find another center. For now, the hope is that rookie Cal Ritchie will be productive enough to fill Pageau’s spot. Casey Cizikas is back in his longtime role of centering the fourth line, but without Ritchie and rookie Max Shabanov — also elevated to the third line — it’s difficult to believe Roy will be rolling four lines consistently.
That, too, takes a physical toll on the forwards getting increased minutes.
“Just guys stepping in and filling voids,” Bo Horvat said. “We’re going to need that.”
But if Warren’s reassignment on Monday showed anything, it’s that Darche knows he has some roster reconstruction to do.
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.