Islanders Prospect Matt Martin

By Adam Cohen
Here's a story I did at rookie camp last season.

Matt Martin, already a fan favorite on Long Island, was drafted by the Islanders in the 5th round of the 2008 draft. The 6' 2", 192lb Windsor native got the chance of a lifetime that season to play on a line with number 1 draft pick Steven Stamkos. By providing toughness to the line, he allowed both Stamkos and Justin DiBenedetto the room they needed to put up big points for Sarnia. In addition, he made life miserable for rival Josh Bailey's Windsor Spitfires during the 1st round of the 2008 OHL playoffs.

I asked Martin about Sarnia's team this season. "We have a lot of good young players that work hard," he said. With the lack of forwards available during the pre-season, a lot line shuffling occurred. Because of this, Matt is unsure whom he will be playing on a line with this season. Assuming they both are back, Martin is expecting to at least be on the powerplay with DiBenedetto and Jamie Arniel.

At the end of the last scrimmage at rookie camp this summer, Martin was working with AHL heavyweight, and newly signed, Joel Rechlicz. Rechlicz, being a left handed fighter, was giving him tips on how to best approach a fight with a lefty and someone with a height advantage over him. The tips were put to good use fairly quickly as Martin went with Richard Greenop of Windsor in pre-season game the day before he flew out to Long Island for Rookie camp. Martin said his father was also a hockey fighter and does boxes with him.

I asked Martin to describe a little about what life is like for someone going through the Canadian Junior Leagues. The families they get put with, called billets, are required to have a desk in their room. They basically watch over the guys to make sure they attend school and keep their grades up. Much like a student athlete here in the States falling grades can cause you to be barred from playing. Mostly they are pretty free to live their lives, making them grow up faster than they might normally do. He found that there was a direct correlation to his on-ice performance and his grades in school.

Stepping out onto the ice in July with Kyle Okposo and Blake Comeau, Martin was impressed with their skills, and how hard they work to get where there are today. At rookie camp, he was looking forward to seeing the rest of the current Islanders and getting advice from them. While they do interviews back in Sarnia, he was not prepared for the intense amount of media on Long Island. With ITV going 24/7, Martin was impressed with the connection to the fans. He also got a lot out of an anatomy talk, learning how all the different parts of the body work together. It put a new perspective on his training to get his body to work more efficiently.

Martin is looking forward to getting back into the swing of the season, and expects nothing less than the best for his season. We wish him the same, and look forward to the day he wears Orange and Blue,