Mikko Rantanen expresses remorse for Alexander Romanov’s hit
Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen got a big reaction after his third-period hit on Alexander Romanov against the New York Islanders. Rantanen was ejected from the game but is not expected to be suspended for the hit. Days later, Rantanen talked about the hitand it sounds like he had no intention of hitting Romanov that hard.
“I never set out to do that, I haven’t done that my whole career,” Rantanen said. “I played hard, but I never intentionally tried to be dirty. Unfortunate moment, but I never intended to do that.”
“I’ve never done it without being touched to just bury a guy from behind. I’ve never done that, so I would never do it. It happened quickly when he fell forward. Unfortunately, I pushed him, but I hope he’s not doing too bad, and I wish him the best.”
Rantanen said he had reached out to Romanov, but had not yet heard from him.
There have been multiple reports of this Rantanen would be penalized for the hitand that didn’t sit well with anyone on the Islanders, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
“Per (Assimakopoulos), no additional discipline is expected for Rantanen. Contact with Mayfield before the collision was a factor in the outcome. The Islanders are obviously very unhappy. Romanov’s outlook is unclear, but he had shoulder surgery there a few years ago, so unfortunately there are concerns,” Friedman wrote.
At this point, we hope that Romanov is okay and will return for the Islanders at some point. Rantanen expressed remorse for the hit, so it seems he didn’t mean to hurt him.
2025-11-19 22:41:00
