Former University of Maine goalie Ben Bishop finished the regular season with the lowest goals-against average in the National Hockey League at 2.06 and the second-best save percentage at .926. He had six shutouts, which was tied for second in the league, and registered a record of 35-21-4 with the 35 wins tying him for fourth best.
And he will be squaring off against a familiar face in the first round of the best-of-seven Stanley Cup playoffs beginning Wednesday night: fellow former Black Bear Jimmy Howard.
Bishop and Howard are two of five former UMaine players who will pursue the Stanley Cup, along with Detroit right winger Gustav Nyquist, Florida Panthers right wing Teddy Purcell and Chicago Blackhawks goalie Scott Darling.
Nyquist had 17 goals and 26 assists for 43 points in 82 games; Purcell notched 14-29-43 in 76 games between Edmonton and Florida and Darling had a 12-8-4 record with a 2.58 GAA and a .915 save percentage while backing up Corey Crawford.
Chicago will travel to St. Louis for their playoff opener on Wednesday.
Howard (14-14-5, 2.80, .906) had lost his starting job to Petr Mrazek but regained it at the end of the year and went 3-2 with a 2.37 GAA and a .916 save percentage in April to help the Red Wings earn their 25th consecutive Stanley Cup playoff berth.
Bishop is looking forward to the series against Howard.
“I’ve gotten to know Jimmy on a personal level the past couple of years. He’s a real good guy. It’s going to be fun. It’s good for Maine,” said Bishop on Tuesday.
He noted that Howard has been playing his “best hockey at the end of the year” to recapture his starting job.
The Lightning will be shorthanded as leading goal scorer Steven Stamkos and defenseman Anton Stralman, the second-leading point-getter among their defense corps, will miss the series due to injury.
“When you’re missing big players, it’s going to be important to keep the game simple. It becomes more of a team game because you can’t rely on those individuals,” Bishop said.
Bishop led the Lightning to a berth in the Stanley Cup finals a year ago with his 2.18 GAA and .921 save percentage during the playoffs and he said he has “felt good” all season.
He said it is important to keep an even keel in the playoffs.
“You have to take it game by game. You can’t get too high or too low. You’re going to have good games and bad games,” said Bishop, who has a lot of respect for the Red Wings and expects a tough series.
“They have a lot of skill and they’ve been together a long time. [Pavel] Datsyuk and [Henrik] Zetterberg are game-changers. You have to keep your eye on them. You can’t let them control the game,” he said. “They also have a lot of good role players.”
Five others with UMaine ties also will be involved in the playoffs.
Former UMaine players Garth Snow, Jack Capuano, Mike Dunham and Bob Corkum are with the New York Islanders as is Greg Cronin, who was the Black Bears’ interim head coach for a year.
Snow is the Islanders’ general manager, Capuano is the head coach and Dunham and Corkum are assistant coaches as is Cronin. Corkum was also an assistant coach at UMaine.
The Isles will play the Panthers beginning Thursday.
And former UMaine defenseman Dave Nonis is a special assignment scout and consultant to general manager Bob Murray with the Anaheim Ducks, who will host Nashville on Friday.