New York Islanders: A to Z will introduce a new generation of fans to the legendary players, magical moments, and colorful 50-year history of the Islanders.
Contributions from Brendan Burke, Stan Fischler, Chris King, and Jiggs McDonald.
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A portion of the proceeds goes to the Islanders Children’s Foundation.
Good Morning, Islanders Country.
It was an end of an “elite” era on Thursday.
The ending wasn’t bittersweet for Josh Bailey with the New York Islanders.
No, that would’ve required ending on a high note. That didn’t happen for the previously longest-tenured Islander. He was a healthy scratch during the regular season playoff push and for all six games of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. We knew it was coming to an end, we just didn’t know how it would end. Yesterday, we found out, and it filled most of us with a bit of sadness and a whole lot of nostalgia.
There has been no more polarizing player than No. 12.
It began with him being the first draft pick of Garth Snow’s rebuild and continued as he was thrust into the NHL too soon and struggled to meet unfair expectations. He settled into becoming a streaky 40-point player and even reached a high mark when he was named an NHL All-Star in 2018 during Doug Weight’s one full season as head coach, earning him a six-year extension.
He’s been through A LOT with the franchise or as LHH’s Dan Saraceni called “The Full Islanders Experience.” He's been an Islander when they were dreadful, played a role when they returned to relevance, and was (at times) indispensable when they became a Stanley Cup contender. He’s been booed and serenaded.
After Bailey played in his 1,000th career game, Corey Wright of NewYorkIslanders.com called him a “bridge between Islanders eras.”
Indeed he was. Players, coaches, jerseys, arenas, and owners all came and went, but the one constant through it all was Josh Bailey.
“This has been home for a long time now. I’ve lived a majority of my life here. My kids were born here. My wife and I love it here. It’s been an honor to wear the jersey for this many years.” - Josh Bailey
Now the bridge is gone, and that full Islanders experience is over.
Bailey was sent (on paper) to the Chicago Blackhawks with a second-round sweetener for “future considerations.” The current consideration was that GM Lou Lamoriello had to rid Bailey’s $5M AAV to create enough cap space to retain UFA’s Scott Mayfield, Pierre Engvall, and Semyon Varlamov.
Then, just as you were looking at the newly released schedule to see when Bailey, Bedard, and the Blackhawks would visit UBS Arena for a homecoming, Chicago GM Kyle Davidson confirmed that Bailey would be placed on unconditional waivers and bought out. They are paying $2.33M for a 2nd Rd. pick in three years.
Davidson said that while he has great respect for Bailey being a veteran player in this league, they “didn’t see a clear path to a role” with the Blackhawks. The same could have been said for the Islanders, but what about the rest of the league?
That remains to be seen.
“I don’t think it could have worked out any better under the set of circumstances; fortunately, Lamoriello said on Thursday. “I’m delighted that it worked out this way so that he can get an opportunity where he’d like to go.”
After being traded, waived, and bought out, Bailey will be an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career. He thinks he can still play and contribute at a high level; now we’ll see if a team is willing to give him that chance for the league minimum and if he can make the most of that chance to prove himself away from the only franchise he’s ever known.
"I came here as a teenager and got married. All our kids are born here, and all the roots are here, and this is where we plan on living when hockey is all said and done, said Bailey back on May 1st about his time on Long Island. "Fifteen years has been a pretty good run, and I'm very proud of that."
We’ll sing to you the next time you step onto the ice on Long Island.
Best of luck, Josh. It’s been quite the ride.
Coming up, a breakdown of each of the day two draft picks, and a professor of prospects hands out their draft grade. Plus, the team leaders after Bailey’s departure and the last time he (oooh, ah) scored on goal.
Let’s dive in.
📰 NEWS: After the Isles were in attendance for the first round of the draft, having traded their pick for the fourth consecutive season, they made five selections on Day 2 from Nashville. Here’s a rundown of each of the Islanders’ five draft picks with an assist to Michael Stahurski’s analysis. You can hear some of Lou Lamoriello’s comments following the draft HERE.
“Everybody feels good,” the GM said after the team made their last pick. “When your scouts feel good, you feel good because they see [the prospects]. And the consensus was that they’re happy with how the day went.”
Danny Nelson, 2nd round (49th overall)
With their first pick of the 2023 NHL draft, the Islanders selected a Minnesota-born center named Nelson, who committed to Notre Dame like Anders Lee and whose favorite player growing up was Zach Parise. I’m sold!
"Brock Nelson is a guy that I really tried to model after," the second-round pick said. "He's a big guy that gets to the front of the net and scores a lot of goals from there. He's also responsible on the back end, so he's kind of one the guys that I watch."
Ranked No. 22 by NHL Central Scouting (NA skaters), Nelson can be considered more of a goal scorer than a playmaker with his heavy shot and finishing ability. Once Nelson gets going, he can pick up decent speed, but he doesn't have the initial quickness to get going. He plays an east-west style, controlling the tempo while in possession, making his skating inadequacies less of an issue.
Jesse Nurmi, 4th round (113th overall)
Ranked No. 28 by NHL Central Scouting (European skaters), Nurmi, from KooKoo of the Finnish junior league, is a confident winger, efficient in scoring and playmaking, with his most prominent asset being his skating. Not only can Nurmi blow past defensemen, but he's also similarly potent at maneuvering around the opposition while manipulating his edges.
Justin Gill, 5th round (145th overall)
The 20-year-old center played on a quality Sherbrooke team in the QMJHL this season, finishing with 93 points (44 goals, 49 assists), good enough for second on his team and ninth in the league. He was a benefactor of playing on one of the QMJHL's top lines alongside the 37th overall pick to the Tampa Bay Lightning, Ethan Gauthier, and Montreal Canadiens prospect Joshua Roy.
“I’m a big, strong power forward that can bring a lot of skills, with also a very good IQ,” Gill said. “I also like to take care of my D-zone first and then step up in the offensive zone
Zach Schulz, 6th round (177th overall)
Per EliteProspects, Schulz is a suffocating rush defender, keeping his check tight without committing too early. He’s physical and decisive, tying up opponents just as the puck comes through and poking away pucks just as they expose it. Anticipates switches of coverage and instantly closes space on his new check.
Schulz captained Team USA’s U18 Gold Medal team at the World Championships this year. As character is something you can’t teach, the Isles valued that heavily when making this selection. “They trusted me in that situation, and my coach trusted me, so I was lucky to do that, said Schulz on being Team USA’s captain. “And we got the job done there. And that was one of the best moments of my life."
Dennis Good Bogg, 7th round (209th overall)
This might end up being their best player picked, but it’s certainly the best name selected on Thursday. Good Bogg is a 19-year-old defenseman who played for Sweden’s Under-18 team in 2021-22, winning a gold medal.
He plays an agitating, defensive game. His size (6’ 2, 201 pounds) definitely plays a factor, as he throws the body whenever given an opening and makes it hard for opponents to be creative.
⏭ NEXT UP: The 2023-24 season! The Isles will open the regular season at home against the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 14 at UBS Arena. Lane Lambert's team will start the season on a three-game homestand with games against the Arizona Coyotes and New Jersey Devils. The Isles will host the Philadelphia Flyers on Thanksgiving Eve (Nov. 22) and will be in Pittsburgh on New Year's Eve (Dec. 31). New York visits the defending Stanley Cup champion Golden Knights on Jan. 6.
The Stadium Series game against the New York Rangers will be on Feb. 18, with the face-off set for 3 PM from MetLife Stadium. Meanwhile, the Isles visit Madison Square Garden on St. Patrick's Day (Mar. 17) and don't host the Blueshirts at UBS Arena until Apr. 9.
The season concludes at home vs. Pittsburgh on Apr. 17.
The NHL Draft really isn’t over until the draft grades are handed out. Corey Pronman of The Athletic detailed what to expect from the Islanders’ new prospects and how they fit into their system.
📚 SOUND SMART: Per Eric Hornick in the off-season Skinny, With Bailey’s trade, these are three new active leaders for the franchise:
Games: Matt Martin - 766
Assists: Mathew Barzal - 257
Points: Brock Nelson - 462
Bailey ends his Isles career with 184 goals- tied w Billy Harris for 14th all-time
🗓 ISLES REWIND: On June 20, 2008, the Islanders drafted Josh Bailey with the 9th overall pick. Bailey, a native of Bowmanville, Ontario, spent the past three seasons in the OHL split between Owen Sound and Windsor. He would go on to play the third most games (1,057) in franchise history.
"I always still watch the draft now and can't help but think back to when it was you and you were in their position, and really just worked out great for me being drafted by the Islanders," Bailey said in 2018 when recounting his draft day. "It was something I'll cherish forever."
🔗 Like it or not, Josh Bailey is an Islanders Hall of Fame by Joe Pantorno, amNewYork “While some will use the compiling argument when pointing at his 394 assists which rank fourth in franchise history and his 580 points which rank seventh, there is an accomplishment in simply remaining with the organization for as long as he did”
🔗 Islanders trade Josh Bailey at NHL Draft, but free agent uncertainty remains by Kevin Kurz, The Athletic “The Bailey trade was necessary from an Islanders’ perspective in that it gives them some needed breathing room under the salary cap. Lamoriello repeated on Monday that he would still prefer to keep all four of the team’s pending unrestricted free agents — goalie Semyon Varlamov forwards Pierre Engvall and Zach Parise, and defenseman Scott Mayfield.”
And we leave you with this…Josh Bailey’s final goal as a New York Islander, coming in a 3-2 win at home versus the Buffalo Sabres on March 7th, 2023.
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.....believe the ONLY fair thing that can be SAID is, Josh was on balance an undeniable ASSET to his drafting team and FREQUENTLY made them a BETTER one (NO question he should be in their HOF - for those reasons you've CITED, Joe....)