John Kreiser at
NHL.com has named Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Ben Bishop as one of seven players poised for a breakout in 2013-14. Joining the likes of Nail Yakupov, Vladimir Tarasenko, Alex Galchenyuk, Jakob Silfverberg, Dougie Hamilton, and Slava Voynov on Kreiser’s list, the lanky goalie finds himself in great company.
Kreiser notes that, among other things, Bishop will finally be given the opportunity to be a starting goaltender in the NHL:
It has taken a few years, but Bishop finally may have a team he can call his own. The 6-foot-7 goaltender was lost in the shuffle in St. Louis and stuck behind Craig Anderson with the Ottawa Senators; he got his first extended chance to start after the Lightning acquired him in early April. Bishop’s 3-4-1 record and 2.99 goals-against average weren't great, but his .917 save percentage and 33.6 shots-faced per game indicate he wasn’t getting a lot of help. He could have the inside track for the starting job after getting a two-year contract extension not long after being acquired, but will be competing with Anders Lindback for playing time. If Bishop wins the competition, he could give the Lightning the goaltending they've been looking for since Dwayne Roloson led them to the Eastern Conference Final in 2011.
On the surface, it’s hard to disagree with much of what Kreiser said. Simply put, Bishop was indeed solid after joining the Lightning at the end of last season. The defense in front of him wasn’t overly good, but the fact remains that Bishop gave the team a chance to win more often than not. With Jon Cooper now running the coaching staff, the team’s defensive play should improve. For Bishop, that can only be good news.
The big question mark here is Anders Lindback. While it’s easy to say that Bishop will be given a lot of playing time, it’s very hard to forget about the Lightning's other freakishly tall goalie. Last summer, he was brought in to be the goaltender of the future. It wasn’t Ben Bishop that Steve Yzerman targeted; it was Lindback.
Lightning fans got a glimpse of what Lindback is capable of during a five game stretch in March. Between March 5th and March 18th, Lindback posted a 1.80 goals-against average and a 0.940 save percentage. In a word: impressive. Unfortunately, Lindback was injured early in the Lightning’s tilt on March 20th, paving the way for Steve Yzerman to go out and acquire Bishop from the Ottawa Senators.
Even so, the sense around the hockey world seems to be that Ben Bishop will lead the Lightning into the 2013-14 season; clearly John Kreiser thinks so. However, this blogger thinks that it’s far too early to truly write off Anders Lindback. If I was to go about picking a Lightning player poised for a breakout season, it would be the Swedish netminder. Ben Bishop, at his best, is a very good NHL goaltender; Anders Lindback, at his best, is no worse than Bishop.
It takes a while for a player to adjust to a new team and new surroundings, especially when that player is young and entering his first stint as a starting goaltender. Bolts Nation saw what Lindback is capable of when he got comfortable in March. Give him a chance to do the same in 2013-14.
With that said, it’s time to make your call. Which Lightning goaltender will play the balance of the 2013-14 season? Will Ben Bishop finally establish himself as a number one guy, or will Anders Lindback take the reins and prove that he’s ready for the show?
As always, thanks for reading.
Ottawa Senators Blogger • 
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