Defenceman Alexander Romanov has been traded to the New York Islanders in exchange for the 13th and 66th overall picks. The Montreal Canadiens have sent the 13th overall to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Kirby Dach.
The #habs have made two trades:
** Alexander Romanov and pick 98 to N.Y. Islanders for pick 13
** Picks 13 and 66 to Chicago for Kirby Dach
Wow!!
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) July 7, 2022
Alexander Romanov Traded to Islanders; Montreal Acquire Kirby Dach From Chicago
Last season for the Canadiens, Romanov scored three goals and added 10 assists for 13 points in 79 games. Over his two-year career, Romanov has four goals and 19 points in 133 games. He has also registered one goal in the playoffs in four total games.
The Canadiens originally selected Romanov in the second round, 38th overall in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. He signed his entry-level contract on May 8th, 2020, and burnt the first year off his deal, having him ready for opening night in the 2020-21 season.
Islanders Acquire Strength For Defence Group
With this trade, the Islanders have strengthened their defence group. Romanov took massive strides last season, thrown into a top-four role. He certainly held his own as a second-year pro playing on a last-place Canadiens team. Romanov now will look to continue that growth with the Islanders and become a mainstay for their veteran team.
The 22-year-old plays an in-your-face style of game, one that gets fans on their seats as he is often looking to lay a massive hit on players coming over the blue line. While he isn’t going to ‘wow’ anyone with his offensive game, he’s still a solid puck-mover capable of helping the Canadiens break out of the zone in transition to create offence.
What This Means For The Canadiens
The Canadiens have now acquired young centreman Kirby Dach. He’s 21, he has a lot of room to improve and grow – and has a space to do so. Montreal is clearly trying to expand their young core selecting Juraj Slafkovsky and now getting Dach. It’ll be interesting to see what they’ll do next season and how these moves will impact their team.
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