Josh Bailey for Kyle Turris – Deal or No Deal?
By Alan Avital
Selected ninth overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, Islanders forward Josh Bailey has heard the rumblings throughout Islander Nation that his services are no longer needed.
Bailey, 22, has scored 34 goals in 211 career games on the Island, but it is his inconsistent play that has led to him not only being shuttled to and from AHL Bridgeport over the past three seasons, but also being bypassed by the team’s “defensive center” Frans Nielsen to center the team’s high-powered wingers Kyle Okposo and Michael Grabner on the squad’s second line.
Yet, is Josh Bailey truly at fault? Was he rushed up from Windsor (OHL) instead of being properly developed?
Maybe.
Still, Bailey has taken it upon himself to hopefully right some wrongs by signing a modest 2-year, $2.1 million deal to remain on Long Island.
Can the same humility be said for Phoenix’s Kyle Turris?
Turris, 22, was selected third overall in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft has as well struggled to reach his lofty potential. He has netted a paltry 19 goals in 131 career games for the Coyotes.
Still, Turris, coming off a career-high 11 goals and 14 assists in 2010-11, remains the lone restricted free agent to hold out to start the 2011-12 campaign. The fourth-year center is seeking a multi-year contract upwards of three-to-four million dollars per, a request which made Coyotes general manager Don Maloney chuckle in amazement.
Yes Islander fans, the same Don Maloney who served the same post here on Long Island from 1992-95
Nevertheless, Islander fans continue to ask why not trade Bailey for Turris?
My simple answer is: Why trade one 22-year old, who has expressed his desire to play on Long Island – a fact that should never be overlooked nowadays (ask Buffalo’s Christian Ehrhoff) – for another 22-year old, who truly believes that he has played worthy of a third overall draft selection and obviously hasn’t.
Bailey may never reach the potential of a top-10 selection or what Garth Snow assumed was the ninth best prospect in the entire draft, but he is an Islander and wants to be an Islander.
The potential of playing a second straight season alongside Blake Comeau, and learning all facets of the game from Brian Rolston, a 38-year old winger entering his 18th NHL season, might jumpstart the Bowmanville, Ontario native or it might just be the right time when Bailey’s potential can be reached.
Thankfully, Bailey is hungry to excel and Kyle Turris is still holding out far, far away.
29 Responses to Josh Bailey for Kyle Turris – Deal or No Deal?
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Steven says:
Turris is not needed. Isles need Defense not another forward. I would trade Bailey in a package for a Dman and not for Turris.
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Orange&Blue says:
Deal!! Josh Bailey is awful. He is slow, is afraid to be hit, and unproductive. Dump him while we can. Comeau and Bailey on the same line could catastrophic for this team. Rolston has his hands full. Also, I dont see the fire in Bailey’s eyes necessary to play and succeed in the NHL. Time to move on. That draft was a blunder. Luke Schenn should be an Islander.
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Winning says:
30 years of watching NHL i have to say micheal haley helps a team win games at the nhl level better then bailey does. If given equal ice time baily wouldnt score much more goals then haley. Plus bailey plays 2 hand touch girlie hockey like his friends tavares, okiposo, nielsen, grabbner. Dump bailey but not for this phoenix holdout. Dump him for a 2nd rounder and move foward.
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Jim Clark says: Bailey had a spurt last year when he played well and then got injured. I could see trading him but for a guy who thinks he should be paid like a star because he was drafted third? Keep
Beetle Bailey. -
kabbage19 says:
I wouldn’t touch that deal with a ten foot pole. Bailey might have been rushed to the NHL but that is in the past. He seems to lack some confidence but he is a good two way centre. I thought he played a good two way game on Saturday. I think it is unfair to expect great numbers from him when he plays with a variety of wingers, non of which have a ton of offensive abilities. I believe he will put up better number if he plays with Comeau and Rolston all year. They didn’t have a ton of time together yet this year (Rolston’s been injured). I think Bailey is a good player and nothing against Fransy, but Bailey would rip it up between Okposo and Grabner too.
As for Turris……………….? He doesn’t fit on the Islanders. All you hear from our young core is they are happy to be here and want nothing but to remain an Islander.
The question for all of you who think we should trade Bailey is “Who would you play in his spot that will do better? We have 4 really good centre icemen on the team this year and that will bode well for us. It would probably make more sense to trade a prospect for a defenseman if that is necessary.
For those still living in the past, and think we should have taken Luke Schenn, instead of Bailey. That likely would have meant we wouldn’t have gotten Hamonic in that draft. I would rather have Hamonic than Schenn now.
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aj says:
this is a nonsense article, there is not even any buzz about this happening so…WTF?
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Dan says:
Wouldnt trade baliey for another struggling player but wont sign a cheaper contract cause he thinks he deserves more.
I would only trade Bailey for an experienced deffensman who can still play, but who is going to be on the other side of that trade
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RV #55 says:
no deal. $1mm per for the next two years is cheap enough to see if Baily figures it out. Swapping out Baily for any other Isles prospect doesn’t have any greater upside. Trading Baily for a similarly situated (young, slow developing) D’man is probably the best you’ll get for him now.
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Staten Islander says:
I’m not ready to give up on him yet. He’s shown flashes the last 2 years, and IF they traded him, I’d only put him in a package for a d-man
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Numbers65 in Ohio says:
nah, keep Beatle Bailey…
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Strummer's Army says:
I have no interest in Turris. He’s another C and even if he was a better player then Josh (which he hasn’t shown if he is) Isles don’t need another C with Strome, Nelson, Czikas, Sundtrom, Trevino etc. etc.
If Josh is traded then it needs to be for a quality & physical D-man.
I’d like to express my disgust for NHL Center Ice. 2 Isles home games and both games the only broadcast they have available is the away teams. Worse, from looking at the listing both days the only game that did not show both the home and away broadcast to give the option to the viewer is the Isles game. Some writers will write that Isles fans believe that we are dissed all the time and it is only our imagination but it is very clear when they only game that they don’t show both broadcast when the Isles are the home team and they pick the away broadcast is they are being unfair to Isles fans.
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WM says:
Strummer, I have DISH Network and, due to a contract dispute, MSG is not even available to me. As a result, the only potential Islander feeds I can get will be games vs. the Devs or Rangers…and even those would only be in SD, anyway. Most of the opponent’s feeds are in HD (high def). Unreal.
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WM that sucks! I am planning on dropping cable this week and buying one of those boxes from Best Buy (The logitech not the Roku) that allows you to watch every thing over the internet, you may want to look into it because you could get the hockey package and watch the Isles. The box is only $99.00 (one time) my cable bill is $80 per month.
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Martyland says:
Are we getting a first-round pick along with Turris? Then yes.
Otherwise, no. Bailey has potential and the right attitude. I agree he most likely won’t be as good as advertised but I get the idea he was selected more for character and leadsheip than for pure offense.
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isles14 says:
agree
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claude says:
pass
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Nick M says:
On a brighter note tavares looks good. His skating is much better. Played very well today. 34 goals is up his ally
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upstateIsles says:
Bailey had a 2 on 1 with the D man covering the pass well with only 2 or 3 seconds left in the first period of the home opener against Florida….
what’d Bailey do…pass up on taking a shot..passed the puck right into the D mans stick which was layed flat on the ice…BUZZZZer…Bailey skates to bench shaking his head…ATLEAST TAKE THE SHOT..even the Squirts I coach know better
Hey Kyle Turris..you aren’t worth any more than Bailey’s modest 2.1M, and if you realized that you might have a place to play this year…
I agree…we need D, not more offense…package him for a defender
…let Rolston wear 12
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Dan C. says:
Is there any substance to this rumor aside from Eklund writing about it?
I thought it was Wang’s policy that the team will not negotiate with holdouts during the season. Since that’s the case, why would they trade for such a holdout?
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nycdork says:
nice read. I still think Josh can turn things around although he needs to play on top 2 lines to produce well.
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Ethan K says:
I’d sure as heck make that trade. Turris is an extremely talented player. I have never been blown away by Bailey’s skill level. But I don’t see it happening.
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Adam says:
I always felt like Bailey has gotten a raw deal. He was rushed up quickly and was unfairly singled out last year when he was sent to the Bridge. If you see him as a playmaking center, then he needs to play with scorers, not grinders on the 3rd and 4th line. Rolston is past his prime, and Comeau will never recreate the scoring he provided last year (comeau is barely an nhler, no creativity, no passing, just a decent slap shot). I could see bailey moving to another team and being good. But I would love for him to succeed here.
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Joe says:
Stop listening to Eklund at HockeyBuzz, Alan. It’s all BS and lies. Also, commenter # 3 (Orange and Blue), when we traded down twice, we acquired two second rounders. Who did we draft with those? Kirill Petrov, one of our top prospects, and Travis Hamonic, who looks like possibly the steal of that draft. So to answer your question: I would rather have Bailey, Hamonic, and Petrov than Schenn.
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the bottom line is simple. wang and snow rushed him and put him on the team even though he wasnt ready and was out the whole pre-season due to a injury, it didnt matter. in wangs and snows sick and delusional world, if it sells a few more tickets, who cares if you ruin a kids career. would not surprise me if wang and snow ruin stromes career as well at the expense of thinking it may sell a couple more tickets. a change of scenery is what bailey needs and so i would make that deal. he was invisible again today, what else has to be said. if he scores 10 goals this year, i think that would be a miricle. i could see 6-8 goals this year at best. i dont think he is a good 4th line player at this point thanks to wang and snow.
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Bob E says:
how is this even a discussion. answer is no. Bailey is part of the core. this will be his season
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I wouldn’t touch Turris with a 10 foot pole. After a career high 25 point season, now he wants a contract of 3 to 4 mil per year? He has to be one of the most delusional players in the NHL.
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Chris says:
Most Isles fans have not given up on Baily, but the fact that there are weeks in a season where he disapears is frustrating. We don’t want Turris, maybe he will force his way out of AZ. but it he won’t be on the Island
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KOkid21 says:
Bailey SUCKS ! Point Blank.
I wouldn’t make that deal. No way!!