Marshall Warren lived ‘dream’ in home debut with Islanders

The New York Islanders have been riddled with injuries this campaign. The injury to Alexander Romanov left a hole on the blue line, which has recently been filled by Marshall Warren. Now, Warren has finally made his home debut in the NHL, playing in the Islanders’ 2-1 win over the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night.

“When you’re a kid, you dream about this. So for me, that was awesome. And we got the win too. So that was really cool,” Warren said after the game, according to Stefen Rosner, Islanders beat reporter for NHL.com and The Hockey News.

It has been a long wait for the New York native to play on home ice in the NHL. He was the 166th overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft by the Minnesota Wild. He went on to play four years of college hockey with Boston College before transferring to the University of Michigan for his final year of eligibility in 2023-24. Warren never came to terms with the Wild and signed an entry-level contract with the Islanders after his college career ended.

The blue liner would play two games in 2023-24 at the AHL level with the Bridgeport Islanders, and then spend 53 games with the AHL squad in 2024-25. Warren made his NHL debut earlier this season, playing 11:20 in a 4-3 shootout loss on the road against the Philadelphia Flyers on October 25th. He recorded two assists in the game, for his first NHL points. The former Wolverine played in one more contest with the NHL club before returning to the AHL. He got the call-up again, though, playing with the team in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Buffalo Sabres on the road on December 20th.

On Tuesday night, he made his home debut, playing 14:24 against the Devils, with three shots, but going without a point.

“I think some of my boys have a section,” Warren said, according to Ethan Sears of the New York Post. “Eighteen tickets somewhere. I’m sure they’ll be loud and cheering for me, which is cool. Obviously, since I’ve been home, just seeing some of my friends and family, spending time with my parents. It’s been nice. It’s always comfortable when you’re home. Fortunate to be able to do that.”

Warren grew up in Laurel Hollow on Long Island, just a half-hour drive from UBS Arena, where the Islanders play their home games.

The Islanders are 20-13-4 on the year, placing them in third place in the Metropolitan Division. Warren will get another chance to play in front of the home crowd when the Isles return to the ice on Saturday after the holiday break, hosting the New York Rangers.