Islanders Defenseman Alexander Romanov Shares Which Non-Russian Teammate Knows The Most Russian

The already bilingual Mathew Barzal appears to have added a third language to his skillset: Russian.

The already bilingual Mathew Barzal appears to have added a third language to his skillset: Russian. 

New York Islanders defenseman Alexander Romanov revealed this information about the Islanders star in an interview shared on X by @Uggg_uggg.

“We always talk in Russian in the locker room,” Romanov said. “Our guys learn Russian...well, ‘learn’ by listening to what we say.”

The Russian goalie tandem of Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov, combined with Romanov, gives other players the opportunity to pick up the language. 

Barzal has done that and more, according to the Islander's defenseman.

“He knows everything,” Romanov said. “'Hey, what’s up, bro (Что члучилось). He just walks up to you and says it.”

Although English is the main language spoken in Vancouver, Barzal's home, No. 13 is also fluent in French.

That probably played a part in just how close he and former Islanders forward Anthony Beauvillier got as youngsters.

The addition of 25-year-old Maxim Tsyplakov from the KHL adds another native Russian for New York. 

With his presence in the Islanders locker room, Barzal may find himself having more conversations in the East Slavic language.