Alas, the time has come. Islanders veteran, Josh Bailey, was officially traded yesterday to the Chicago Blackhawks, being sent along with a 2026 2nd-rounder in exchange for future considerations. Bailey has been placed on waivers by CHI with the intention of being bought out as both teams seek to navigate their salary cap situations. He had one year left on his contract worth $5M AAV, and will become a free agent if he chooses to continue playing. The Islanders, now with $10.3M in cap space (per Stefen Rosner), began what may be a series of moves to manage the roster, in particular addressing the list of UFAs including Pierre Engvall, Zach Parise, Scott Mayfield, and Semyon Varlamov.
Josh Bailey was selected 9th overall by the Islanders in the 2008 NHL Draft, playing a total of 15 seasons and 1,057 games with the franchise. He is 3rd in games played for the Islanders, behind Potvin and Trottier. The Bowmanville, Ontario native finished his time with New York totaling 184 G and 396 A for 580 P.
Bailey’s 2022-23 season tied his rookie year in scoring for his second lowest output at 25 points (64 GP). The brass had begun phasing him out of the lineup this season with Lane Lambert’s first year behind the bench. Josh saw a few health bombs along the way, including on the night of what would have been his 1,000th game, at home against the Rangers, as well as all six playoff games against Carolina.
Bailey made it clear prior to his trade, however, that he did not intend to watch his final year of his contract from the stands, and who can blame him? Nothing hurts as a hockey player quite like watching your own team play without you.
As loyal as he has been, his play was just not helping the team anymore. After 15 years, he managed to be a .55 PPG player without significant defensive contributions, and this middle-of-the-road roster has needed some touches of revitalization. Bailey did, despite being the Isles whipping-boy, contribute significantly more in the playoffs (.70 PPG) with some seriously timely goals. In fact, he seems to only score important points, but that wasn’t enough to justify his salary. As a fan, it is also somewhat encouraging to see the front office make a move that needed to happen despite how long he has been here, and it was certainly not a cut-throat trade.
It is a bit of a bittersweet feeling. I am as guilty as anyone in terms of supporting his role being lessened for several years, but he was still always one of our guys, and spending that much time here and doing what he has is nothing to be taken for granted. He survived the mediocrity of the early 2010s and helped this franchise become a notable place to play.
There are few Islanders who garner as much admiration for their off-ice contribution to the team, serving as a veteran and foundational player for this new phase of Islanders hockey. His teammates love him and we will all miss singing for him at UBS. Do we need some new tunes at the Stable? Considering his tenure, it would make a lot of sense for some sort of franchise recognition in the future for Bailey, like naming an award or part of a building after him, as a number retirement is a bit too drastic.
You may have already been flooded with Bailey content for some time now, but enjoy some more while it still makes sense to!
Farewell, Josh Bailey, and thank you for your time on the Island. You will always be remembered by Islander fans.
The Morning Skate 