When the Canadiens traded Alexander Romanov on draft night in 2022, just about everyone in Montreal was taken by surprise. Many (including me) were disappointed to see the club part with the young Russian defenseman, especially for a young forward who was slow to take off in the NHL.
A year and a half later, Romanov is a distant memory in Montreal… and the forward acquired in return, Kirby Dach, is one of the club’s best players. He’ll have to avoid the infirmary eventually, but he’s one hell of a healthy hockey player.
Why am I telling you about Romanov today? Well, because this season, one aspect of his game seems to have changed: checking.
He used to hit like a train in Montreal. It was one of his main assets.
When we look at his numbers this season, we see that he has only 49 checks in 35 games, or 1.4 checks per game. That’s a far cry from the last two seasons, when he had 227 (2.87 per game) and 198 (2.61 per game) checks respectively.
(Credit: Screenshot/HockeyReference)
And if we look a little further, Romanov’s 49 checks would put him in 4th place with the Habs (the same position he occupies with the Islanders, by the way). He would be ahead of Michael Pezzetta (78), Josh Anderson (60) and Juraj Slafkovský (53).
What’s most interesting, however, is that he’s only just ahead of Arber Xhekaj… and Xhekaj has only played 17 games, less than half the number Romanov has played.
Interesting thing I noticed: Alexander Romanov (really) checks less than he used to. #Islanders
In fact, Arber Xhekaj(#GoHabsGo) has almost as many as he does… and he’s only got 17 games (compared to Romanov’s 35). pic.twitter.com/iLU2gtxpXh
– Félix Forget (@FForget_LTM) December 30, 2023
Is this necessarily a bad thing? The answer, according to Lane Lambert, is a pretty definitive “no”. The Islanders’ coach loves Romanov’s progress and attributes the fact that his protégé hits the opposition less often to the fact that, in the end, he plays better.
He has possession of the puck more often and plays better defensively. It’s not for nothing that he forms an excellent pair with Noah Dobson on Long Island, and Romanov himself acknowledges that he’s trying to play smarter rather than “trying to hit the opposition at all costs”.
“I just liked to make more and more hits [early in career]. That’s just what I wanted. But not now […] I think I started playing smart.”
More on Alexander Romanov’s drop-off in hits and why it’s a positive for #Isleshttps://t.co/5Ge2eIV7vuhttps://t.co/5Ge2eIV7vu
– Stefen Rosner (@stefen_rosner) December 22, 2023
Obviously, with the Habs’ congestion on the blue line, Romanov would have been superfluous, but it’s still good news to see him develop into an excellent defenseman in New York.
And with Kirby Dach showing his potential as a top-6 center (and maybe even a first-team center), the Habs can’t be too sad about the deal either.
In bursts
– Nothing less.
When Arber Xhekaj is in a scrum bullying two players at the same time, it means nature is healing, it means the Sheriff is getting his fucking mojo back 
pic.twitter.com/gcrkL1xfzJ
– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) December 30, 2023
– It’s pretty crazy.
This is the wildest NHL stat I’ve seen in a while:
Nathan MacKinnon has 27 points in the time since Jonathan Huberdeau got his last point (Nov. 30).
Unbelievable.
– Brian Costello (@bcostellothn) December 30, 2023
– Sean Farrell is in fine form.
Sean Farrell redirects a return Emil Heineman shot on the power play to give the Rocket a 1-0 lead. Number 15 is playing some great hockey right now.
– Anthony Marcotte (@anthonymarcotte) December 30, 2023
– I’m thinking the same thing.
Mavrik Bourque is the leading scorer in the AHL.
“I don’t think you can get to the National League too ready. I think you can arrive not ready enough.” https://t.co/wAgn0FWsG5
– Katherine Harvey-Pinard (@kharveypinard) December 30, 2023
– Ouch.
The face-off provided by the Panthers’ press notes, or how to contextualize Cole Caufield’s season at a glance. pic.twitter.com/Fh5swLis83
– Simon-Olivier Lorange (@SO_Lorange) December 30, 2023
– An amount that makes people react.
Injury or not, he took advantage of the starter’s market. https://t.co/2xJOZRbeEd
– Passion MLB (@passion_mlb) December 30, 2023
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