Ben Bishop prepared for Game 5 against the New York Rangers under pressure. His Tampa Bay Lightning hope —believe — their goaltender can handle what's coming.
That would be Game 5 of the Stanley Cup playoffs' Eastern Conference finals. Faceoff tonight at Madison Square Garden is about 8 p.m. ET. TV: NBC Sports Net, CBC and TVA.
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The elephant in the room? Bishop allowed 10 goals in the past two games, something he hadn't done in four years. He got lucky in Game 3 as his Bolts atoned for their mistakes in front of him to win. He wasn't as lucky in Game 4 when the Lightning fizzled in a chance to go up 3-1 in the series. Phht.
So with the Eastern Conference finals at 2-2, the stage is set. The Rangers again have home-ice advantage, they have momentum and they have Henrik Lundqvist.
Can Bishop meld with Lundqvist and gain the quiet confidence to let double-digit goals allowed fade into the ether? King Henrik did, and he allowed a dozen goals before Friday's victory.
Big Ben isn't Lundqvist. Neither will he be replaced.
"You never want to give up 10 goals in two games, but we did," Bishop said, calling his play "unacceptable". "We'll go back and look at it, and adjust."
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It's not just Bishop. Coach John Cooper told media members on Saturday his team's defensive play has been "inconsistent."
"When there is long stretches where we're not giving up anything, and then there is just a flurry," Cooper said. "I look at [Game 4], we didn't, I consider, give up a ton through the first 45 minutes. We gave up a ton in the last 15 minutes.
"But aside from that, it's just these little inconsistencies. We've got to improve on our special teams as well. That's a power play. Didn't get it done."
In their 5-1 loss, the Lightning allowed power-play goals by Rick Nash and Martin St. Louis in the third period.
"Our penalty kill has been a little leaky the last couple games," Cooper said. "When your special teams are rolling, it helps you roll. So we've just got to tighten up in some areas. Our efforts there is just a little bit execution. We go through these little flurries where the Rangers have taken advantage of us, and we've just got to tighten it up."
The Rangers scored four times in the final 35 minutes to blow open a tight game.
Grousing about Bishop reached Cooper's ears . When asked if he thought of making a goalie change, he told the Tampa Bay Times:
"I'll look at you like you have five heads," Cooper said. "How's that? No change."
More?
"I understand your question," Cooper said. "For someone to sit here and say, are we changing (in) goal? That is asinine to me."
Message received. Now, the Lightning must take it to heart.