The decision to keep Josh Bailey had gone from "long shot" this summer to "you never know" during his injury rehab to "foregone conclusion" as he impressed Isles brass with his maturity and poise once he started playing in NHL games.

"He's done everything right that we've asked him to do…Whoever he's going to play with down the road is going to be a better player because he's one of those players who can make something out of nothing. That's an exciting thing to have because those players are hard to find.

>>Islanders coach Scott Gordon

He's only played 9 (soon to be 10) games at the NHL level, but so far Bailey has done nothing but indicate GM Garth Snow and his scouting staff knew exactly what they were doing -- and got what they wanted -- when they traded down from the #5 position to get a basket of picks and their prime target, Bailey.

Lots more from Greg Logan and at the Islanders official site.