New York Islanders: Top 5 Draft Picks in Last 10 Years

5.) Josh Bailey

Many Islanders fans aren’t thrilled with the play of forward Josh Bailey, but the ninth overall pick in the 2008 NHL Draft is still a contributor for the Islanders. Looking back at it, the top of the 2008 NHL Draft was rather strong. Steven Stamkos was the first overall pick, Drew Doughty was taken second overall, and Alex Pietrangelo was taken fourth. Unfortunately for the Islanders, they weren’t selecting high that year.

In the 2009-2010 season, Bailey looked like he was going to emerge into a really good player for the Islanders. In just his second season, Bailey totaled 16 goals and 19 assists in 73 games. Also, he played well on the power-play with three goals and seven assists.

Unfortunately for Bailey, he regressed the next few seasons. After a few poor seasons, Bailey has begun to rebound and settle into the player he is now. In the 2014-15 season, Bailey had the best season of his career with a career-high 41 points. Bailey is never going to be a top scorer in the NHL, but he has been a decent scorer for the Islanders. Even though he didn’t turn out to be a superstar as a top-10 pick, Bailey has been a Top-6 forward for the Islanders for most of the last nine seasons. That is something that certainly has value.