NY Islanders F Matt Martin's Legacy Is Untouchable, But His NHL Days Are Over

Listen, I love Matt Martin. He was the first hockey card I ever owned. He was the first jersey I ever bought. I vividly remember the cashier at Lifestyles Sports in Wantagh telling 13-year-old Joey that Matt Martin was an “excellent choice”. I appreciate Martin and his legacy fully.

But he has no business playing NHL hockey this year.

I actually quite liked the original setup for Martin. He was on a PTO, which meant he could practice with the team while not taking up a roster spot. I do not question his value to the locker room. He’s played almost 1000 games, and remains one of the all-time NHL leaders in hits. It was a pretty good gig to use Martin as a player/coach hybrid. 

Then Lou signed him to an actual contract…

The move made as little sense then as it does now. Since then, he has played in 24 NHL games and recorded only a single assist. He’s barely playing, averaging 7:47 of TOI per night: the lowest of his career. Why have him taking up a roster spot if you don't/can't use him?

Analytics can’t stand him. His hockeystatcards.com net rating is -5.2. That’s well below the 25th percentile. Evolving-hockey.com credits him with -.413 GAR per 60 minutes. That’s good enough for the 90th worst skater in the NHL. 

Watching Martin in 2024-25 is painful. You see the old Martin. He’s staring right at you: the reckless (in a good way) physicality, the willingness to stand up for teammates, the flame that made him so much fun to watch for a decade. But it’s all diminished. He doesn’t get to his spots as quickly as he used to, nor does he hit as hard as he used to. Without those things, who is Matt Martin?

This, in no way, takes away from his career contributions to the Islanders. He gave his body, mind, and spirit to this team and community for over 840 NHL games (at the time of writing). No bad season could ever take away from that. 

But Father Time comes for us all, and it’s already come for Martin. I’d love for the Islanders to bring him in as a coach, as they did with Johnny Boychuk. But his time as an NHL-worthy player is over. Everybody involved needs to accept that, regardless of how painful it is.

Overall Grade: F