from Mike Zeisberger of NHL.com,

The tears have been forming for almost two decades.

Patrick Marleau will do everything in his power to keep them from trickling down his cheeks.

Easier said than done.

Marleau will make his highly anticipated hockey homecoming when his Toronto Maple Leafs visit the San Jose Sharks on Monday (10:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, SNO, NHL.TV). The 38-year-old forward played the first 19 seasons of his NHL career in San Jose.

Marleau knows the Sharks will have some kind of in-game tribute for him. He doesn't know when it will take place or what it will be. But when that moment does come, with his wife and four sons among the family, friends and thousands of fans at SAP Center, he admits it will be difficult to hold back the emotions.

And the tears.

"I don't know how I'll react when it happens," Marleau said recently, fighting to find the right words. "Hopefully there is someone beside me making jokes or something. Keep things light."

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