Blackhawks acquire Bailey, pick from Islanders

NASHVILLE — The Chicago Blackhawks made another move to expand their forward group and help another team’s cap situation Thursday by acquiring winger Josh Bailey in a trade with the New York Islanders.

Bailey and a 2026 second-round pick were sent to the Blackhawks in exchange for future considerations. The 33-year-old Bailey, who played more than 1,000 games with the Islanders, has a year left on his contract worth $5 million.

It’s a move that gives the Islanders a little more than $9 million in projected cap space, according to CapFriendly. Chicago entered the offseason needing to add salary to get to the cap floor so has been a willing trade partner for cap-strapped teams.

Bailey’s the latest addition in what’s been a busy week. It started Monday when they landed former Hart Trophy winner Taylor Hall and the rights for Nick Foligno from the Boston Bruins in exchange for the rights to defensemen Ian Mitchell and Alec Regula. A few hours later, the Blackhawks signed Foligno to a one-year, $4 million deal.

Then, of course, Wednesday arrived and they drafted Connor Bedard with the No. 1 pick.

Last season was a challenging one for Bailey. He finished with eight goals and 25 points in 64 games. It was an average of 0.39 points per game, a decline from Bailey’s career average of 0.55 points per game. It was the fourth time Bailey has scored fewer than 10 goals in a season since his career started in the 2008-09 season.