For the New York Islanders, big-time injuries to big-time players happen every year. This year, it was injuries to Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock.
Both have played in just 26 of the Islanders' 50 games, with Scott Mayfield missing 15 games.
New York has tried to plug holes with waiver wire pickup Mike Reilly, the trade of Robert Bortuzzo, and the shifting around of rookie Samuel Bolduc and depth defenseman Sebastian Aho.
While the Islanders tried to figure things out, failing to find consistency in their game led to a coaching change a few weeks after the New Year; the absence of the big-name blue-liners gave Noah Dobson the opportunity to be "the guy."
Not only has Dobson flourished in his bigger role, eating minutes and performing on both sides of the puck on both sides of the ice (getting some time as a left defenseman), but he's also pulled Alexander Romanov along with him.
A pairing of 22-year-olds that couldn't figure it out together early on in the 2022-23 season before being split up used their experiences from last season and have found another level to their game.
Dobson has six goals and 46 assists through 50 games while averaging the second most minutes per game in the NHL at 25:55. He also owns a plus/- of 21 on a team that is a -22 on the season.
Romanov isn't an offensive player by any means, but his five goals through 50 games is already a career-high, and at 22:23 minutes per game, he's playing more than he's played in his NHL career and is a plus 14.
His hits are down, but that's more due to him not chasing hits and staying more compact positionally.
The emergence of Dobson is similar to what happened with certain Islanders when John Tavares left the island.
A player like Brock Nelson got an opportunity and ran with it, putting the Islanders offense on his back, essentially, until Bo Horvat came to Long Island last January.
If Pelech, Pulock, and Mayfield don't get hurt, does Dobson, who had a nightmarish 2022-23 season, get the chance to spread his wings, or does his limited role impact his ability to gain confidence in certain areas that were lacking?
Does Romanov get to thrive the way he has?
The now 23-year-old duo has emerged as a legitimate No. 1 defense pairing this season, which not only allows Pelech and Pulock to play with each other but also allows Roy not to have to use them in every big-game moment.
Having two No. 1 defense pairings on one roster -- one being seven years younger than their strong counterparts who are on long-term contracts. -- is a pivotal thing for the organization going forward.
You can watch Rosner talk Islanders hockey on Hockey Night in New York with co-host Sean Cuthbert live Sunday nights at 8 PM ET during the season on Twitch, YouTube, Twitter & Facebook.