To get to the heart of Matt Martin, the heart and soul of the Islanders for every minute of his seven seasons with the team, you need to know what he's thinking about as he plays his first game against his old team on Sunday in Barclays Center.
"Some guys might want their old teams to fail, I guess," he told Newsday in a phone conversation from Montreal, where his Leafs faced the Canadiens on Saturday before flying down to New York for Sunday's emotional return. "I'm not that way. These guys are all my friends still, I want to see them succeed in the worst way.
"If the Leafs can't win the Stanley Cup, then I want the Islanders to win it. Heck, if we're out, I'd probably be in the stands at Barclays in a Casey Cizikas jersey. I made Long Island my home."
Outside of John Tavares there was no more popular Islander than Martin. Some of it had to do with his work on the ice, where he led the NHL in hits for the past five seasons and did a lot of the gritty work his teammates and the fans always appreciated.
Some of it came from his work off the ice, where the 27-year-old from Windsor, Ontario dove into the community head first, starting the Matt Martin Foundation to support a variety of causes, including the fight against cystic fibrosis and for the spouses and children of fallen policemen and firefighters.
That he ended up meeting and falling for Sydney Esiason, daughter of Boomer, perhaps the Island's most visible sports personality, should be no surprise.
With all that popularity inside the locker room and outside of it, Martin could have been bitter that Islanders general manager Garth Snow decided to let the popular winger leave for Toronto and the $10 million over four years the Leafs offered on July 1.
But Martin doesn't see it like that. "It's a business," he said. "I knew it before I signed my deal and I still know it. Garth and Cappy (Isles coach Jack Capuano) were all I knew for my whole career and I can't be mad about anything with them. It goes right down to the staff, Ann (Rina, community relations director), the trainers, the equipment guys. You can't just forget all that."
The adjustment period is ongoing for Martin, as it's been for the team he left. The Leafs entered Saturday's game 2-2-3, a respectable enough start for a team that hasn't made the playoffs in three years and one that features Auston Matthews, one of the game's bright new stars.
"We had a lead in every game," Martin said. "It's felt a little like how we were with the Isles four or five years ago."
Martin arrived on the Island late in the 2009-10 season, which was also Tavares' first year. He had two assists in his NHL debut, then his first fight a night later against the Penguins. Over the years, there were plenty of fights (67) and a few goals (42) in 438 games, 34th all time on the franchise's games played list.
And he morphed from an enforcer into a big part of the Isles' successful fourth line, alongside Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck. Martin had 26 of his 42 goals the past three seasons after Capuano put that line together.
"I've already had a few different linemates this season," Martin said. "I played with Casey and Clutter for 21/2 years and we grew to know where each other would be at all times. This has been a bit of an adjustment for sure."
The week leading up to Sunday has brought a new reminder each day of his return. He got tweets and texts telling him that MSG Network teased his return by showing a top five moments in his Islanders career during Thursday's telecast.
"I'm sure it'll be emotional for me," he said. "I matured as a player and a person on the Island. It'll always be special for me. I'm trying to win a game (Sunday), but as soon as it's over I'll be rooting for those guys."
