Islanders' Josh Bailey, in a low-key career, hits the 900-game mark

Recently, Josh Bailey was discussing having fans back in arenas, particularly Nassau Coliseum, as COVID-19 restrictions are eased. The longest-tenured Islander expressed his anticipation of "playing more games in front of them."

Well, another 100 gets Bailey to the career-defining 1,000-game threshold. He played in his 900th as the Islanders opened a two-game series in Pittsburgh on Saturday night.

Bailey, who made his NHL debut on Nov. 11, 2008, is now tied with Bobby Nystrom for the third-most games played in Islanders’ history. He trails just Hall of Famers Bryan Trottier (1,123) and Denis Potvin (1,060) and coach Barry Trotz said getting to 900 is certainly motivation for reaching 1,000.

"It really whets the appetite, quite frankly," Trotz said. "One thousand games in this league is really a great career. Once you get that far, you think, ‘Golly, another season and a bit and you get to 1,000, which is pretty unique company. You’ve got to play at a high level for a long time. You’ve got to stay fairly injury free. It fuels a lot of guys."

Bailey, with 336 career assists, is two shy of matching John Tonelli for sixth place on the Islander’s all-time list. He had five goals and 14 assists in 34 games entering Saturday, including two goals in his previous three games.

He tied Thursday’s 4-3 overtime win in Boston at 2 early in the third period, crucially keeping the puck in the offensive zone at the blue line before cutting to the right circle for Brock Nelson’s feed.

"I’ve played a lot against him over the years," said defenseman Andy Greene, who played in his 968th game on Saturday but reached No. 900 while still with the Devils. "I knew he was a really good player. I didn’t know he was this good. He’s very sneaky. He works extremely hard and he’s got very good hockey sense and very good deception. He knows the areas to get to. He’s an extremely complete player."

But, just like Greene did not reach 1,000 with his original team, it’s not a slam dunk Bailey will be in an Islanders’ jersey for that milestone.

Bailey, who will be 32 at the start of next season, is in the third season of a six-year, $30 million deal that has neither a no-trade nor a no-movement clause attached.

There’s a chance Bailey could be left unprotected in this summer’s expansion draft with the Seattle Kraken entering the NHL and the Islanders facing another salary-cap crunch. Top-pair defenseman Adam Pelech will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights and likely will cost $5 million-plus annually. Impending RFA Anthony Beauvillier will also get more than his current $2.1 million cap hit. And impending RFA goalie Ilya Sorokin, a bargain at $2 million as a rookie, will be due a significant raise as well.

But as president and general manager Lou Lamoriello considers who to expose in the expansion draft, he will also continue to value the strong chemistry among the Islanders’ core, Bailey included.

"I met Josh when I got traded here, we became friends almost immediately," said Cal Clutterbuck, acquired from the Wild in 2013. "He’s one of those guys that really knows the game of hockey well. His game is understated and I don’t think you gain an appreciation for what he’s able to do out there unless you’re with him every day.

"I’ve spent a lot of time with him over the last decade. One of my closest friends. He’s everything you can ask for in a buddy, a person, a friend and a teammate."

By Andrew Gross

andrew.gross@newsday.comAGrossNewsday

Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.