The New York Islanders have secured the services of a hard-nosed veteran for another season.
Forward Matt Martin, who is 45 games short of reaching the 1,000 mark in his NHL career, has signed a one-year contract with the Islanders for what will be his 15th season in the League.
Martin had been with the Islanders this fall on a Professional Tryout Agreement after concluding his four-year contract which was signed in January of 2011.
The move also comes after the Islanders were forced to put injured forward Anthony Duclair on Long Term Injured Reserve; he’s expected to miss at least the next four to six weeks with a lower-body injury.
The Islanders take on the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers at UBS Arena on Saturday night starting at 7:30 PM EST.
Matt Martin is approaching 1,000 games in his NHL career
Originally selected by the Islanders with the 148th overall pick in the 2008 NHL Draft, Martin played the first several years of his career with the team before signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs ahead of the 2016-17 NHL season.
Martin’s return to the Islanders contradicts general manager Lou Lamoriello’s statements earlier in the fall, which cast doubt on Martin’s future with the team, via The New York Post.
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“We’ll probably be moving on,” Lamoriello explained prior to the season beginning. “That isn’t saying things can’t change. We’re talking about two veterans, two quality individuals. Two team leaders and two real good hockey players, so we’ll have to see how things come about.
But we haven’t changed our thought process today any different than the last time we spoke.”
In 955 career NHL games with the Islanders and Maple Leafs, Martin has tallied 81 goals with 85 assists along with 1,158 penalty minutes. He’s also added eight goals and five assists in 88 career postseason games.