Josh Bailey agrees to 2-year deal
Josh Bailey #12 of the New York Islanders skates against Tyler Sequin #19 of the Boston Bruins. (Feb. 17, 2011) Credit: Jim McIsaac
With about eight hours to spare until his 2011-12 season would be spent elsewhere, Josh Bailey agreed to terms on a two-year deal worth $2.1 million, according to a source.
Bailey, the Islanders' 2008 first-round draft pick, rejected his one-year, $850,000 qualifying offer in June, hoping for a longer-term, more lucrative deal. The Islanders and Pat Morris, Bailey's agent, were fairly far apart in negotiations for the entire summer, and the deadline of 7 a.m. on Friday for a deal to get done or else Bailey would be barred from playing for the team this season, as per Islanders policy, forced Bailey to accept a deal for far less than he was hoping.
The 21-year-old Bailey came back to Long Island last week to skate with his teammates, though, a sign he wanted to be back in the fold. Now it's done and he can try to improve on a disappointing 2010-11, in which he had 11 goals and 17 assists in 70 games and spent three weeks in Bridgeport to work on his game and his confidence.
The Islanders payroll for 2011-12 currently sits at around $49.9 million.
