Bailey set for 1,000th NHL game with Islanders
Forward says spending entire career with New York has 'been a fun ride'
The time will come when the Islanders visit the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday (7 p.m. ET; BSSO, MSGSN2, ESPN+, SN NOW), albeit two days later than anticipated. Bailey was a healthy scratch for a 5-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Oct. 22, knocking him off course to achieve the milestone at home against the New York Rangers on Wednesday.
Bailey made the most of Game No. 999, scoring his first goal of the season in a 3-0 win at UBS Arena. Now Bailey, selected in the first round (No. 9) by the Islanders in the 2008 NHL Draft, can focus on the milestone.
"It's tough not to get emotional thinking about it," Bailey said after the game Wednesday. "I had a lot of family and friends here tonight, people that mean a lot to me. They're riding the wave with me, the highs and lows, and it will be just as special for them as it will be for myself and having them be a part of it will make it much more special too.
"You wouldn't be here without a great support system and that includes everyone in this room here. It's been a fun ride."
Bailey's parents will watch him play Friday nearly 14 years after he made his NHL debut as a 19-year-old forward in a 3-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, on Nov. 11, 2008.
"Just a kid, a teenager," said Bailey, who turned 33 Oct. 2. "I feel like my eyes were wide open. I was just trying to soak it all in. My mom and dad and brother were there for that one too. It was something I've dreamed about since I was a little kid. You always remember that first game and looking across at warmups and seeing guys that you've watched on TV and played video games with, to be on the other side of it now is pretty cool."
Bailey played 11 games for Bridgeport of the American Hockey League in 2010-11 and, except for six games with SC Bietigheim in Germany during the 2012-13 NHL lockout, he hasn't left the NHL or the Islanders. Though Bailey has not scored more than 18 goals in the NHL and had more than 56 points once (71 in 2017-18), longevity is his modus operandi.
In his 999 NHL games, Bailey has 556 points (177 goals, 379 assists). Born in Bowmanville, Ontario, he's played no fewer than 68 games in each of his 14 NHL seasons, except 2020-21, when he played 54 of 56 games in the COVID-19-shortened season, and 2012-13, when he played 38 games during the lockout-shortened season. He agreed to a six-year contract Feb. 23, 2018, that prevented him from becoming an unrestricted free agent. Only Hockey Hall of Famers Bryan Trottier (1,123) and Denis Potvin (1,060) have played more games for the Islanders, and Bailey is the only skater not from the dynasty seasons of 1980-83 (when New York won the Cup four straight seasons) with at least 50 points (16 goals, 34 assists) in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Bailey was scratched against the Lightning because Islanders coach Lane Lambert thought a spark was needed. He was back the next game, playing 15:39 in a 3-2 loss at the Florida Panthers and 14:55 against the Rangers, redirecting Adam Pelech's slap shot from the right face-off circle for a 2-0 lead at 5:37 of the third period. It brought back what's common at home games: fans serenading him with a remix of Bruce Channel's "Hey! Baby" that goes, "Hey Josh Bailey! I want to know will you score a goal!"
There will be another reason to salute Bailey on Friday. It's a tribute to skill and intelligence that's made him reliable enough to play this long.
"It's incredible actually that he is approaching that," Lambert said. "He means so much to the organization for so many years. In terms of the player that he is, he's a cerebral player, he's a smart player. You can trust him. You can count on him defensively and he provides offense as well. A lot of the things that he does aren't noticed as much as maybe us coaches notice them. A very valuable guy from that standpoint."
