This summer the Flyers have been tied to a number of different defensemen. The two topping the list were John Carlson and Darnell Nurse, both of which Philadelphia general manager Danny Briere was hoping to land in free agency. As well all know Carlson signed with Tampa Bay, while Nurse ended up with the Sharks. So Briere came up empty-handed. Also, the situation with Rasmus Ristolainen — in the final year of his contract and with no plans for Briere to re-sign him — has meant Philadelphia possibly looking outside their pipeline to fill a need for a big, rugged defenseman. And a name has resurfaced yet again in New York Islanders defenseman Alexander Romanov.
According to reporter Marco D’Amico on Tuesday’s episode of The Starr & D’Amico podcast, Philadelphia is reportedly showing interest in the 26-year-old player.
“Philadelphia I could see 100%,” D’Amico said when they were discussing potential landing spots for Arber Xhekaj. “This is a team that likes that style. Of course, they’ve been looking for a defenseman all summer. They were in on Carlson. They were very interested in Darnell Nurse. And I’ve been told that they’ve kicked tires on Alexander Romanov — they’re looking for evidently that kind of player, right?”
Romanov, 26, was a second-round draft pick of the Canadiens in 2018. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound left-shooting defenseman is an imposing presence on the back end. He doesn’t have much if any offensive upside, but would seem to fill the role a guy like Ristolainen has prided himself on since Philadelphia essentially refurbished him into a reliable, stay-at-home defenseman.
Romanov played 54 games in his 2020-21 rookie year for Montreal, scoring once with five helpers. His sophomore season was much the same, playing 79 games with three goals and 10 assists. However, Montreal dealt Romanov and a fourth-round pick in 2022 to New York in exchange for the Islanders’ first-round pick (thirteenth overall). Romanov was a steadying presence for the Islanders, missing just 18 games from 2022-23 through 2024-25. He also marginally saw his offensive production rise, scoring seven goals in a 22-point in 2023-24, tying his point total in his first year with New York the previous season.
Pleased with his performance, the New York Islanders signed Alexander Romanov to an eight-year, $50 million contract last summer, carrying an average annual value of $6.25 million. However, his 2025–26 season was derailed when he was struck from behind by Dallas forward Mikko Rantanen late in regulation during a Nov. 18 game. The controversial hit resulted in Rantanen being ejected for boarding and brought Romanov’s season to an abrupt end. Romanov underwent shoulder surgery on Nov. 23 and did not return for the remainder of the campaign. Before the injury, he had logged more than 20 minutes in each of his previous five games. He concluded the season with one assist in 15 appearances.
In April, the Islanders suggested that Romanov could potentially return for the final two games of the regular season. However, after Philadelphia secured the last playoff berth over Carolina, New York chose to take a cautious approach and did not risk using a defenseman who had been sidelined for nearly six months. Before suffering the injury, Romanov was primarily paired with Tony DeAngelo, though he also spent short stretches alongside other defensemen, including Calder Trophy winner Matthew Schaefer.
What Romanov would bring to the Flyers
Clearly, with the Flyers having zeroed in on Nurse as much as reported, the team is looking for a bigger, tougher, imposing defender to add to their lineup. And they were also reportedly in on Romanov last year alongside Boston who were inquiring about the blueliner. Romanov, if healthy, would provide that for the most part. It’s not that he’s a bruiser who racks up penalty minutes (163 penalty minutes in 369 regular season games) or is known to drop the gloves at will. But he can use his size to knock players off the puck, if not knock them on their backsides.
As well, Romanov isn’t that much of a defensive liability. In 2024-25, his goals for percentage (49.04) was third among all Islanders defenseman 5-on-5 (minimum 900 minutes), only behind Scott Mayfield and Noah Dobson (who he was paired with a good portion of 2024-25). And his expected goals for (49.21) was also third on the back end using the same criteria, behind Dobson and Adam Pelech.
What might be most enticing to Briere is that Romanov is locked up for quite a while now, and with the identical cap hit Travis Sanheim currently owns. His age is also a plus, as at 26 years old the Flyers could see Romanov’s best years ahead of him in a top four pairing. So the security of having a dependable, big defenseman at a rather economical cap hit, especially with a blossoming cap ceiling for the foreseeable future, might be a practical option for Philadelphia. Another tidbit to consider besides the cap hit is that Romanov’s contract sees him with a no trade clause beginning in 2027-28 that runs through the end of the 2029-30 season. After that it’s a modified no trade clause until the end of the contract, with Romanov having a 16-team list. So if a move for Romanov is going to get done by anyone, it has to pretty much be done before the beginning of next season.
The drawbacks of Romanov
The biggest concern, of course, is Romanov’s health following the injury, surgery, and lengthy recovery process. In a recent Russian interview, he said he is essentially fully recovered and currently training at full capacity without any limitations from the shoulder injury as he prepares for the upcoming season. By his own account, he is in good shape.
Still, as with Tyson Foerster, any player coming off a season-ending—or nearly season-ending, in Foerster’s case—injury naturally raises some questions about whether the shoulder can withstand the demands of an 84-game schedule. On the other hand, although the two are very different players, the Flyers may look at how well Foerster bounced back after surgery and believe Romanov can make a similarly strong return to form.
And as we know from Briere’s tenure with Philadelphia, he’s not averse to taking a chance on a guy who is coming off a lackluster season. One only has to look at David Jiricek to see Briere is quite comfortable rolling the dice on players he thinks still have an upside.
What would the cost be
The fact he’s a left-handed shot, and the fact that he’s averaged between 19 to 22 minutes in the last four seasons prior to 2025-26, Romanov needs to be a top four guy. So that would certainly narrow who Romanov might be replacing. It’s doubtful Romanov would be paid what he is (at least for the next few seasons) to simply play 10 to 12 minutes a night on the third pairing, making a guy like Nick Seeler redundant. Nor would he be eating up the 26 to 28 minutes a night on occasion a guy like Sanheim effectively does all season. There’s always the option of playing Romanov on the other side of a pairing, but for now we’ll keep him where he’s most comfortable.
That means the most likely spot Romanov would be fitting into would be Cam York’s. The idea of seeing York dealt — especially after scoring the overtime-winner against Pittsburgh in last year’s first round — might be surprising. However, York has absolutely no trade or movement protection in his deal. And at just $5.15 million AAV for the next four seasons, would that be type of defender that piques the interest of the Islanders and their general manager Mathieu Darche?
That doesn’t necessarily mean Cam York would be traded to New York in a straight one-for-one swap for Romanov. York could instead be included in a different trade that helps the Flyers address their need at center or improves the roster in another area. Of course, it’s also possible he remains in Philadelphia for the duration of his contract.
From the Islanders’ perspective, they may view a prospect such as Hunter McDonald—the last remaining Flyer still needing a new contract before the season begins—as a potential target, either on his own or as part of a larger package. In any case, with the Flyers having been linked this offseason to larger defensemen such as Darnell Nurse and, to a lesser extent, Montreal’s Arber Xhekaj, it’s possible Philadelphia is exploring a move for Romanov, particularly if Rasmus Ristolainen is expected to be moved in the near future.
