Longtime Islander Brock Nelson expecting ‘weird’ feeling as he faces former team for first time since trade

COMMERCE, Colo. — Even now, eight months and a new contract into his time with the Avalanche, Brock Nelson is still processing the trade that sent him from Long Island to Colorado.

His first game against the Islanders, the franchise for which he played over a decade before getting traded last March after declining to sign a contract extension, is “part of that process,” Nelson said after the Avalanche wrapped up their practice Saturday.

“It’s weird,” Nelson said. “It took a bit [of time], for sure. I still keep tabs on all the guys. … It’s such an adjustment to have — not that I would sleepwalk through warmups — but to know the ins and outs from everything: staff and player, personnel, team, different things, to reintegrate a bit took a little bit of time.”

Nelson, whose 901 games and 295 goals with the Islanders each rank fifth in the franchise record books, was the subject of protracted trade rumors leading into last season’s deadline.

Lou Lamoriello, then the general manager of the Islanders, was open about wanting to extend Nelson, but when the two sides failed to agree on terms, Lamoriello pivoted and dealt Nelson to the Avalanche for a package highlighted by Cal Ritchie and a 2026 first-round pick.

Brock Nelson moves the puck during the Avalanche’s Nov. 4 game against the Lightning. AP

Ritchie, the Avs’ top prospect at the time, will be in the lineup for the Islanders on Sunday at Ball Arena.

And Nelson, for the first time in his career, will look to the opposing bench and see an Islanders logo.

“At the end of the day, had a lot of good, honest conversations with Lou, and Lou was great to me throughout the whole process, through those times,” Nelson said. “It definitely wasn’t easy. You can’t look back in hindsight and worry about your time and how to change things.”

Brock Nelson is pictured during the Islanders’ March 1 game against the Predators. Heather Khalifa for the NY Post

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Nelson gave an open invitation to his old teammates for dinner on Saturday and a number of them — including, but not limited to, Casey Cizikas, Anders Lee, Kyle Palmieri, Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Bo Horvat — took him up on it.

“It’ll be different playing against them,” Nelson said. “It’ll be something. These are the guys, I’m familiar with their whole routines and stuff for over a decade and they’re familiar with mine. It’ll be weird seeing them on the other side.

“I prefer the way it’s set up where it’s here first before going back there [to Long Island]. I think it’ll be nice. Going back there, it’ll be a little bit different. I’m excited for the guys to come over, hang out, shoot the s–t, see each other.”