Ben Bishop blocks a puck away during Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals. (photo/NHL.com)
Ben Bishop, who grew up in St. Louis and was drafted by the Blues in 2005, played through a tear in his right groin and came up just short in his quest for a Stanley Cup Championship as the Tampa Bay Lightning were eliminated in the Finals in Game Six by a 2-1 final at the hands of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Bishop said if it was during the regular season, he would have missed at least two weeks, but when players aren’t sure when this opportunity will come along again, the 6’7 netminder needed to try to play through the pain. Bishop admitted his mobility was limited.
“You want to play the game, no matter what. I barely got through Game 3, and I didn’t want to go out there and then be gone for the rest of the series,” said Bishop.
Bishop was injured during Game 2 and missed part of the third period in which his backup Andrei Vasilevsky actually picked up the win, when Tampa Bay scored the winning goal while Vasilevsky was on the ice and Bishop was in the dressing room tending to his injury. Bishop played in Game 3 but was scratched from Game 4 in an attempt to get extra rest. He returned for the last two games and allowed two goals in each, while stopping several good scoring opportunities in both games.
Bishop was tied for the league lead with 13 playoff wins and three shutouts. He also became the first goalie in NHL history to record victories in his first two-game seven appearances. Bishop beat Detroit in the opening round in and the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference Finals.
