Can Alexander Romanov Succeed Amidst the High Expectations?

Montreal Canadiens prospect Alexander Romanov should look to make the team’s opening night roster on January 13th. Can he live up to the high expectations?

This past July, when the fate of last NHL season was still undecided, I wrote an article on Montreal Canadiens prospect Alexander Romanov.

Among other things, I stated that he isn’t the star player everyone was and is expecting him to be. Not surprisingly, I got the response expected when talking negatively about a player with a lot of expectations and anticipation surrounding him, something which was understandable in the grand scheme of things.

Montreal Canadiens fans have numerous reasons to be excited about this team’s future, possessing several top prospects who have continued to impress at the amateur level. 2019 first-round pick Cole Caulfield is, without doubt, the teams’ number one prospect, something both the general news media and we here at A Winning Habit have agreed upon. The Wisconsin native, despite his small stature, possesses a lethal shot, great skating and offensive awareness, something which has led to him being a point per game player in his first season and a half at the University of Wisconsin.

The second most coveted prospect the Canadiens have is, similarly, without doubt, Romanov. A second-round pick of the Canadiens in the 2018 draft, not much was known about the Russian defenseman prior to his selection. While having posted some impressive numbers at the U16 and U17 levels for Krylya Sovetov, the Moscow native had yet to make his KHL debut, spending the 2017-18 season in Russia’s development league, the MHL. After an impressive showing at the 2019 World Junior Championships, however, Romanov became a more familiar name in the realm of NHL prospects, posting 8 points over 7 games, being named the tournament’s best defenseman.

Since then, Romanov has garnered further attention from Canadiens fans, being seen as a future top defenseman for the team. Having signed a three-year, entry-level contract on July 13th, Romanov should look to make the opening night roster when the 2020-21 NHL season gets underway on January 13th. In my previous article, I made a number of points regarding why I think Romanov isn’t the future star everyone has envisioned him to be, and while my opinion hasn’t changed majorly, I am excited to see Romanov take the ice with the Canadiens, and I do think he is a legitimately intriguing prospect with a bright future ahead of him.