BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Minnesota Wild forward Thomas Vanek enjoyed his time playing for the New York Islanders. Even after leaving the team, he said he, John Tavares and Kyle Okposo made up the best line he has ever played on.

But a deal-breaker caused Vanek to spurn the Islanders, eventually leading to his becoming a free agent and signing a three-year, $19.5 million contract with the Wild in the summer of 2014.

Vanek, who played 47 games with the Islanders during the 2013-14 season, wasn’t on board with the team’s abandoning its home ice on Long Island to move to Brooklyn.

Vanek said he loved the aging Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Long Island, where the Islanders played for 43 years, and didn’t want to be a part of a move to Barclays Center, where the Wild visited for the first time for a Tuesday night game against the Islanders.

“Definitely doesn’t feel like Nassau,” Vanek said Tuesday after his first skate at Barclays. “It’s weird. I enjoyed Nassau Coliseum, even though it was old. The crowd and the atmosphere was great.”

The Islanders reportedly offered Vanek a seven-year deal worth $50 million to re-sign when he became a free agent after the 2014 season. Perhaps if they had remained on Long Island, the former University of Minnesota star might have stayed.

“The way it was mentioned to me was, you’d have morning skate down here (at Barclays Center) and pretty much get a day room (at a hotel). With the distances and the traffic, I didn’t feel like my (sons) would come to many games. And that, to me, wasn’t attractive,” Vanek said. “I want my kids to be at the games. They love going to the games and coming down after, and (I like) having them be a part of my career and my games. I didn’t like” the move to Brooklyn.

After his first visit to Barclays Center, Vanek said the new building, which was built for basketball, looked fine.

“It just wasn’t the right fit,” he said.

Follow Chad Graff at twitter.com/ChadGraff.