Alexander Romanov Injury Hits Islanders Hard

The Alexander Romanov injury news landed Wednesday, October 7, 2026.

And it's the worst kind of October headline for the New York Islanders: a torn ACL in his right knee, surgery to repair it.

And six to eight months on the shelf (NHL.com).

One awkward collision in a rivalry game just cost this team a key piece of its blue line for most of the season.

How the Alexander Romanov Injury Happened

It happened Tuesday night at the Rangers, in a 5-2 loss that already stung on the scoreboard. Midway through the third period, Romanov got tangled up with Mika Zibanejad.

And the awkward collision ended his night and, effectively, his season (NHL.com, Sportsnet).

He never took another shift.

The Islanders defenseman did not play the final 12:04 of the game. And the Associated Press noted he sat out the last 12 minutes after the tangle (ESPN). CBS Sports reported he left the contest in the third period and was unable to return (CBS Sports).

Head coach Pete DeBoer had no answers right after the final horn, saying only that Romanov was still being evaluated and that the Islanders would know more Wednesday (Yahoo Sports, CBS Sports). Wednesday delivered the verdict: "Alexander Romanov will require surgery to repair an ACL tear in his right knee. He will be out 6-8 months," per the team's official injury update, as quoted by SI.com.

That's the whole season, basically. The 26-year-old defenseman now faces surgery and a long rehab while the calendar keeps moving. Teams lose players in March and survive it. Losing one in early October means remaking your blue line on the fly, in games that count, with no runway to sort it out.

Alexander Romanov Injury Timeline: April at Best

Sportsnet called Romanov a key blueliner, and the Islanders will now be without him for most of 2026-27 (Sportsnet).

NHL.com's read is blunter: he likely misses the rest of the season (NHL.com).

Here's the math, and it's grim. Pro Hockey Rumors reports Romanov won't return until April at the earliest. And the Islanders' regular season ends April 10 (Pro Hockey Rumors). Even in a best-case recovery, he plays five or six games. CBS Sports frames it the same way: a return for the final few games, nothing more (CBS Sports).

The only glimmer is the postseason. If the Islanders qualify for the playoffs, Romanov could be a late option for that run, per Pro Hockey Rumors. But that requires surviving six months of hockey without him first.

Do the Islanders Get LTIR Relief?

Yes, in the accounting sense. Pro Hockey Rumors expects the Islanders to place Romanov on long-term injured reserve (Pro Hockey Rumors).

LTIR gives the club room to bring in a replacement body and keep the roster functional.

It does not give them back the player, and that's the part that actually decides games.

What to Watch Without Romanov

One awkward tangle with Zibanejad in a 5-2 October loss now hangs over the entire Islanders season. Watch the pairings over the next few weeks. Because somebody has to inherit those minutes every night. And nobody replicates what a 26-year-old key blueliner does over a full schedule.

Watch the standings, too. The interesting version of this story only exists if the Islanders stay in the race long enough that an April comeback or a playoff return means something. If they fade by midwinter, the six-to-eight-month timetable becomes academic.

So here's the season's first real test: does the blue line hold together, or does October 7 turn out to be the day it quietly slipped away? Keep an eye on the next Islanders lineup card.

How they deploy their defense tells you exactly how they plan to survive this.