It was a good time for Josh Bailey to have a career season.
The Islanders are trying to not let Bailey reach free agency, closing in on a new deal to be either five or six years with an annual salary-cap hit around $5 million, TSN reported. Bailey, 28, can become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
The winger is in the final season of a five-year, $16.5 million deal that carried an annual cap hit of $3.3 million. Playing this season mostly alongside captain John Tavares, Bailey has 15 goals and 47 assists on the season, the latter being among the league leaders despite Bailey missing four straight games in January with a lower-body injury. Bailey did not have a point in Thursday’s 4-3 shootout loss to the Maple Leafs. The production also earned him the first All-Star nod of his career, having previously never surpassed the 43 assists or 56 points he had last year.
The decision by Islanders general manager Garth Snow came in the immediate lead-up to the trade deadline, which is Monday at 3 p.m. The Islanders were one point out of the second wild-card spot as play began Thursday, and Bailey likely could have brought a nice return on the rental market.
But the player the organization drafted with the No. 9 selection in 2008 might help bring back a bigger haul if his new deal has any sway in Tavares deciding to stay. Tavares, who is also a potential unrestricted free agent this summer, has played with Bailey since the Islanders took him No. 1 in the 2009 draft.
Largely the biggest obstacle in Tavares’ decision was the future home of the franchise, but co-owners Jon Ledecky and Scott Malkin were able to broker a deal for a new arena at Belmont Park, likely to open for the 2021-22 season.
Yet the contract for Tavares is going to be far, far more substantial than the one for Bailey. Tavares has utilized his deserved leverage before making a decision, but at least now he knows that Bailey will be with the Islanders if he decides to return.