The Tampa Bay Lightning have been considered a legitimate threat to the New York Rangers as the best team in the Eastern Conference. An increase in offensive production, an improved defense and one of the best farm systems have put the Bolts in an enviable spot for at least this season. But oddly enough, an unknown commodity during the 2013-14 season could be the reason Tampa Bay falters in 2014-15.
The Tampa Bay Lightning acquired even strength in close situations (0-1 goal differential) from the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons, as well as Ben Bishop’s numbers, courtesy of War-On-Ice.com, over the same period of time.
| GF% | FF% | SF% | SH% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TBL (13-14) | 55.7 | 51.7 | 52.2 | 7.7 |
| TBL (14-15) | 56.1 | 54.2 | 54.7 | 8.71 |
(Fenwick For Percentage, or FF% accounts for shot attempts, missed and on goal, excluding blocked shots)
| SV% | AdSV% | SA60 | Sv%L | Sv%M | Sv%H | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop (13-14) | 93.64 | 94.28 | 28.33 | 98.01 | 94.57 | 85.93 |
| Bishop (14-15) | 92.00 | 93.06 | 25.64 | 97.74 | 92.53 | 83.49 |
Tampa Bay’s offense and defense are both getting better while Bishop is trending downward, albeit slightly, in the prime of his athletic abilities. Bishop is stopping fewer shots across the board –- low percentage, medium percentage, high percentage -– and making more work for the team in front of him.
That has to change or else the team’s improvements could be for naught. The old hockey adage is true: your goaltender is only as good as the players in front of you.
To further accentuate concerns over Bishop’s play, Pat Holden of Russian Machine Never Breaks wrote a great piece in mid-March for Hockey Prospectus detailing the goaltending play of the eight Eastern Conference playoff teams. It's now outdated because Ottawa has recently surpassed Boston for the final wild card spot, but it showed an alarming number regarding Bishop: he's the worst goalie among playoff teams. Please read the entire piece from Holden, and all of his work with RMNB.
Being the bearer of bad news is never fun, but a deep playoff run can fall on the shoulders of the goalie. There is no better time than now for Ben Bishop to show that his Vezina-worthy season in 2013-14 is more of the norm than an aberration.