Ben Bishop over King in Game 7, as Lightning feed off goalie’s effort
NEW YORK – Going by the numbers, sticking to the trends and acknowledging the history, Ben Bishop was not expected to be the goaltender raising his arms in the air in victory at the end of Game 7, having pitched a shutout and propelled his team to the Stanley Cup Final.
Not the guy who gave up five goals on three separate occasions in the series. Not the guy that wasn’t named Henrik Lundqvist, the New York Rangers netminder that had given up five goals in his last six Games 7, all of them wins.
“He’s much-maligned,” said Lightning coach Jon Cooper on Bishop, who made 22 saves in the 2-0 Lightning win at MSG, “but the two pivotal games that we’ve needed to win in this building, he shut the door.”
For a lot of fans, great goaltending means a high number of shots turned aside, or a collection of acrobatic saves one can point to as examples of stellar play. Bishop had neither of those in Game 7 — outside of a three-save sequence in the third period — and his team arguably played its most structurally sound game of the postseason in front of him.
But to dismiss Bishop’s performance is to ignore what Bishop gave the Lightning in Game 7, which is what he’s given them all season: The Rebound Effort.
“The doubt was from the outside. But his ability to bounce back, as well as that of our team, has been outstanding,” said Steven Stamkos.
Bishop has given up more than three goals on nine occasions this season, including three times in the Eastern Conference Final.
His record and save percentage in the games immediately following those blowout loses?
That would be .937 with an 8-1 record, including the series-clincher against the Rangers.
“All the talk was on Lundqvist and his record in these games,” said Stamkos. “We feed off Bish. He was solid again. In the games we needed him the most this season, he was at his best, and that’s what great players do.”
Bishop challenged his teammates after their 7-3 loss in Game 6, saying afterward that they “gave up the net” in their own zone while desperately trying to tie the Rangers in the third period. The result was a five-goal outburst that turned into an embarrassing blowout.
In Game 7, he saw the kind of effort he witnessed in his 26-save Game 5 shutout at MSG, instead of the whiff in Game 6. “Last game, they had some open looks, some odd-man rushes and a couple of seeing-eye pucks. And tonight the guys were blocking shots, giving up their bodies, sacrificing, and it makes a big difference when the guys are out there doing that,” said Bishop. “It makes it really easy on me.”
Easier than Lundqvist had it, for sure, facing 25 shots.
It was Lundqvist’s first home loss in a Game 7 (4-1), and the first time the Rangers had lost a Game 7 at home.
It was Bishop’s second win in a Game 7 this postseason. He’s faced 53 shots on goal, and turned aside all of them.
It’s not a Lundqvist level legacy, but it’s a burgeoning one.
“Yeah, it’s nice,” said Bishop. “Obviously, we all knew his record. You saw it all over the TV, and there weren’t many people picking us, so it’s nice. It kind of gives you a little bit more [motivation] — you don’t need much in these games.”
Now, the Lightning and Bishop will play for the franchise’s first Stanley Cup since 2004.
After blowing a chance to clinch it on home ice in an embarrassing loss.
After having to beat a team, and a goalie, that had never been beaten before on their home ice in a Game 7.
“It’s unreal how they respond,” said Cooper, “and it starts with our goaltender.”
