Martin still key piece despite limited time

LAS VEGAS — The value of a player like Matt Martin sometimes becomes more clear when he’s not in the lineup.

That was the case in Colorado on Tuesday after Samuel Girard laid out Robert Bortuzzo with a hit along the wall, eliciting little response from the Islanders. Two days later, Martin was right back in the lineup after having been a healthy scratch for five of seven games.

“I just think I know what I bring to the table as a player,” the 34-year-old Martin told The Post before scoring a third-period goal in a little more than 13 minutes of ice time during Saturday’s 5-2 loss to the Golden Knights. “I think I’ve been doing it for a long time. I think they know as well what I bring as a player. So I just try to worry about those things and when your name’s called upon, you can go out and try and play a good game.”

The combination of injury and being scratched meant that Saturday was just the 18th game Martin has played this season. His time on ice is the lowest it has been since he returned to the Islanders in 2018 as well.

His spot in the lineup is no longer guaranteed on a nightly basis on a team for which Hudson Fasching has shown himself perfectly capable of playing a straight-line game in the bottom-six. But there is still value in the physicality Martin brings.

That was confirmed not just when Martin was out of the lineup but when he returned in Thursday’s 5-1 win over the Coyotes, reuniting the Identity Line on an evening in which it was typically effective.

The trio of Martin, Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck is not the nightly machine it once was. But it does hold a 51.39 expected goals percentage this season, and has been on the ice for just two goals against over 16 games.

They are not running on empty. Neither is Martin, whether playing every night or not.

The context around Martin’s role, combined with him being on the last year of his contract at age 34, lends itself not just to questions about trying to compete for playing time but about his future.

There is every chance this season could be the last ride for the player who has spent 13 of his 15 seasons on Long Island.

Adam Pelech (upper body) skated with the team on Saturday morning, but did not play against the Golden Knights.