Frans Nielsen ready for first game vs. Islanders

Frans Nielsen returned to the rink a few miles from Manhattan, and he felt strange. He was playing for the Detroit Red Wings now, not the New York Islanders anymore. He was on the road, but …
"It still feels like home," Nielsen said.
And that was when the Red Wings visited the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on Nov. 25.

So imagine how he'll feel when the Red Wings visit the Islanders at Barclays Center on Sunday (6 p.m. ET; MSG+, FS-D, NHL.TV).
The 32-year-old center never has faced a former team before, and to him, the Islanders are more than a former team. They are the team that made him who he is as a player and created so many strong bonds.
"It's going to be a little nervous and weird for sure," Nielsen said. "I've got so many friends on that team, so it's going to be … I don't know how to explain it."
Until Nielsen signed with the Red Wings as a free agent July 1, the Islanders were the only NHL organization he had ever known.

General manager Garth Snow gave Nielsen his first one-way NHL contract in 2008, even though he had come up from the minors and played but 31 games for the Islanders over two seasons.
"He believed in me," Nielsen said. "He gave me a chance to get into this League."
Coach Jack Capuano worked with Nielsen with Bridgeport of the American Hockey League for most of two seasons and with the Islanders for six seasons. Nielsen was from Denmark and had played in Sweden. Capuano helped him adjust to the North American rink and style, and he helped mold him into a two-way player. This is so fresh, when Nielsen speaks of Capuano, he goes from past to present tense.
"He just taught me how to play a kind of game where I can be consistent every night, not fancy, nothing like that, but be solid and play a simple game," Nielsen said. "He's been on me since Day One for 10 years, always keeps reminding me and stuff like that, I think just how to be a pro and how to approach the game every night and make sure I play the right way every night."
Teammates became special to Nielsen, particularly Kyle Okposo, Josh Bailey, Cal Clutterbuck and John Tavares. They grew up together. They went through so much together. Finally, they won something together, defeating the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference First Round last season, giving the Islanders their first series victory in the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 1993.

"You created a relationship that was more than just teammates," Nielsen said. "It was really, really good friends off the ice too."
Through it all, Nielsen grew to love Long Island itself. He loved living in the quiet family area so close to the excitement of the city. He called it "awesome." This year, he spent the summer there for the first time because he and his wife, Moa, were expecting a baby. Their son, Lou, was born in August in Manhasset, New York, about 15 minutes from where the Islanders used to play at Nassau Coliseum.
"It's always going to be special for us," Nielsen said. "I'm pretty sure it's a place that after I retire we're going to keep coming back to."
So why leave?
"I never thought I was going to leave," Nielsen said. "I was pushing my agent hard even before the interview period started to get something done, but for some reason, it dragged out. We couldn't figure it out. I had a chance to talk to other teams. That was the moment where I realized maybe it would be fun to try something new."
Knowing Okposo likely would leave as a free agent (he signed with the Buffalo Sabres), Nielsen listened when the Red Wings called. He liked their history and style of play. He knew Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg. He received a six-year, $31.5 million contract.
"It can be dangerous if you're too comfortable," Nielsen said. "If you're in the same spot too long, you need a new challenge sometimes and to just listen to a new voice in the room, see some new faces. …
"As a hockey player, I think Detroit's just one of those places, it's tough to turn down somehow, with all the tradition, with all the great players that's been here over the years. Overall, it's one of the most popular teams in the world. There was just something about it when I talked to these guys. I was like, 'Wow, this could be a great opportunity for me.' "
Nielsen did not have a full training camp with the Red Wings because he played for Team Europe at the World Cup of Hockey 2016; the underdogs from countries outside the Czech Republic, Finland, Sweden and Russia went to the final against Team Canada.

The World Cup was one of the best experiences of his life; he wouldn't have changed a thing. But he had a few days off, a practice or two, and one preseason game before his first game with his new team, new coach and new system. He had three goals, five assists and a minus-8 rating through his first 20 games with Detroit.
"I've never been traded, but I think I had a little bit of that feeling," Nielsen said. "You just came right into a new team and started right away."
But he has the same role he had with the Islanders, playing against the opposition's top players. And that game in New Jersey? The one in which he felt strange? He had two goals and an assist in a 5-4 win. He had an assist in each of the next two games too. He is up to 14 points (six goals) in 25 games.
"I didn't worry about [the start] too much," Nielsen said. "My mindset is always just go out and try to play the right way. I'm a big believer in over 82 games you get what you deserve. I'm trying to be the same guy."
The same guy Capuano taught him to be.