Andrew Gross: For Islanders, revenge on Stars' Mikko Rantanen will wait
Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin makes a save during the second period against Mavrik Bourque of the Dallas Stars at UBS Arena on Thursday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
There were more immediate, pressing issues for the Islanders than exacting revenge on Mikko Rantanen, and they rightfully recognized that.
Namely their desperate need for two points pretty much every time they take to the ice, as was the case on Thursday night against the Stars at UBS Arena.
So it probably was best for all parties that Rantanen remained out of the Stars’ lineup with a lower-body injury even if his expected return is imminent. Thursday’s game was simply too important for the Islanders to turn it into something else.
But that doesn’t mean the Islanders have forgotten or forgiven Rantanen for ending defenseman Alexander Romanov’s season in the last minute of the Islanders’ 3-2 win in Dallas on Nov. 18. Nor should they.
At some point, probably next season, Rantanen will have to face the Islanders again. No doubt, some Islander will go after him.
Perhaps it was just coincidence that Romanov, who required surgery on his right shoulder to repair his labrum, rejoined his teammates on the ice for the first time during Thursday’s morning skate wearing an orange non-contact jersey and with coach Patrick Roy repeating that he will not be able to return to the lineup until the playoffs, provided the Islanders make it.
Or maybe it was a motivational tool.
“It’s an unfortunate play,” defenseman Scott Mayfield told Newsday. “It was a long time ago. It’s just rough that we lost one of our top players for a really good chunk of the season. But right now, it’s all about two points. It’s all about getting wins.”
OK, but follow-up question: Is there any disappointment that Rantanen was not in the Stars’ lineup on Thursday?
“Um, I got no comment on that one,” Mayfield said with a bit of a smirk. “It is what it is.”
“We don’t forget those kinds of things and we take a lot of pride in this dressing room for being there for our teammates when things like that happen,” Casey Cizikas said. “Him not playing tonight, that kind of changes some things, but it’s not going to change how we come prepared for the game.”
Rantanen, off balance or not, slammed Romanov into the wall from behind, drawing a five-minute major for boarding and a 10-minute misconduct. As Rantanen skated to the Stars’ bench, Roy screamed at him, “You’re not going to [expletive] finish that game!” — meaning Thursday’s match.
Rantanen drew no supplementary discipline for the hit on Romanov, which angered the Islanders, even more so when Rantanen then drew a suspension two games later for a similar hit on the Flames’ Matt Coronato of Greenlawn.
“It’s hockey sometimes,” Anders Lee said. “We haven’t forgotten it. We know what happened. There’s a lot of heat-of-the-moment there and we lost a good player. Whether it was accidental or not or whatever, the decision on how that play was, we lost a good player, and that was really frustrating. But we’ve got to win hockey games and we’ve got to focus on the right things.
“It’s part of our game where these things happen. You’re looking forward to seeing him again, but we have some tasks at hand that do take precedence. We can’t control that he’s not coming in tonight.”
Romanov, 26, in the first season of an eight-year, $50 million deal, struggled through the season’s first six weeks before getting hurt. Perhaps he was pressing to justify his new contract, but he had one assist in 15 games and, at times, looked lost defensively.
But that doesn’t change the fact that the Islanders’ best lineup includes Romanov’s physical presence and his ability to slow down opponents with some of the hardest — and cleanest — hip checks in the NHL these days. If the Islanders qualify for the playoffs, Romanov’s return would be a huge boost.
Which, again, is why perhaps it was fortuitous that Rantanen did not play on Thursday. It eliminated a potential distraction for the Islanders.
“It’s nice to see Romanov out there with the guys,” Cizikas said. “You know how hard those guys work off the ice and everything they do to put themselves in the best possible position to return. Having him out there is big. Even if he’s not ready to come back yet, it’s the step in the right direction.”
Rantanen? That could wait for another game.
But the Islanders haven’t forgotten. Or forgiven.
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.
