Lee and Bailey Moving Up Islanders Games Played List

It may be game seven on the 2020-21 schedule, but for Josh Bailey and Anders Lee, there will be some added significance when the puck drops on Thursday night in Washington.
Bailey will suit up in his 872nd game for the Islanders, tying Clark Gillies for fourth on the franchise's all-time games played list. Lee will suit up in his 500th game, becoming the 32nd player to do so in franchise history.

In an era with plenty of player movement between teams, there's almost a romantic quality to players who stay with one organization for the bulk of, or duration, of their careers.
"Those guys have a lot of sweat equity not only in team, the organization, but the friendships and the development of young guys," Head Coach Barry Trotz said. "You see how guys grow as players and family men and they are usually involved in the community. Guys that have spent a long period of time in the organization or in the city, they're going to be really invested. I felt it when I was in Nashville for so long, it became home."

Drafted in 2008, Bailey's the longest-tenured Islander by a healthy margin, playing in 305 more games as an Islander than Matt Martin, who is second-highest among the active roster. Barring any health issues, Bailey should pass Bob Nystrom (900 games) before the end of the season for third place on the all-time list. If he can stay healthy - and if the NHL returns to 82-game regular seasons - Bailey has a shot of finishing his career as the franchise's all-time games played leader, a title currently held by Bryan Trottier (1,123). Bailey could potentially play 1,168 games with the franchise by the time his contract is up in 2024.
"To play that much hockey and as consistently as he has for such a long time, it's awesome to see and he deserves to climb up our franchise's history books a little bit," Lee said. "Night in and night out, Josh is such a professional, the way he handles himself and the way he plays the game. His consistency over the years has shown."
Bailey is also currently tied with Brent Sutter for eighth on the franchise's all-time assist leaderboard with 323. His 477 points rank 13th all time.

As for Lee, the Islanders' captain is also poised to vault up the games played leaderboard. Lee is signed through 2025-26, and with the same caveats as Bailey regarding health and season length, could hit 959 games played when his contract expires. Not that Lee, who is 13th on the franchise's goal list with 174, or Bailey, are looking that far ahead, as they're focusing on task at hand in a rematch with the Capitals.
"Every day I think all of us here realize how lucky we are to be in these positions being able to play hockey," Lee said. "[I've] been able to live out my dream here. I can't believe it's been 500 games already. I'm looking to the rest of my career here and moving on. It's pretty cool I guess, but at the same time it's just another game."