Dallas Stars Must Have Passed On Ben Bishop At This Point

As much as it will sting for many Dallas Stars fans, the rumors of trading for a new goaltender need to be extinguished. It doesn’t look like anything will be happening in the near future.

It might hurt. It might scare you. It might even make you nauseous. But at this point, it’s the honest truth that must be accepted: Ben Bishop is not coming to the Dallas Stars this offseason.

As July moves closer to transforming into August, the offseason is quickly chugging on. We’re at the point where the World Cup of Hockey is less than two months away, which means that regular season hockey is not very far off .

That being said, the movement in the offseason has decreased exponentially. The trade market has quieted down and the free agent signings are primarily in regards to RFA’s under qualifying offers. In other words, there is not much player movement going on.

That being said, the rumors of Ben Bishop floating to Big D are all but extinguished, at least for now.

The reports first surfaced around the time of the NHL draft on June 24th that the Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning were in talks of making a deal happen.

It seemed like a win-win scenario for both clubs. The Stars were coming off of a 50-win season using the two-goalie tandem of Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi. They claimed first place in the Central Division as well as the Western Conference going into the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and both goalies had a decent-sized role in the success.

The playoffs rolled around, and that’s when things went downhill. Niemi could not put up consistent performances and Lehtonen was not ready to take on the role of full-time starter. In the end, the Stars fell in seven games in the second round to the St. Louis Blues. The loss turned Stars fans against the duo and had them calling for another offseason of change in the crease.

Meanwhile, the Lightning are currently running with two starting-caliber goaltenders on their roster. Both Bishop and Andrei Vasilevskiy are young goalies who can lead a team through the postseason, as they have proven with the Lightning the last two years.

The only problem is, the expansion draft is one offseason away from commencing, and every team can only protect one goaltender. If TB has to cough up one of either Vasilevskiy or Bishop to potentially be drafted, there is a strong chance that they will not be getting the goalie back. So why not deal one of the goalies now and get something significant in return instead of losing them for nothing?

Bishop is definitely the candidate up for trade. He’s had some troubles with injuries over the past few years and Vasilevskiy is simply younger and still has a lot of potential yet to be discovered.

So back to the rumors. The Stars and Lightning were reported to be talking about a potential trade in late June and even into early July, but they could never reach similar terms. The possible deal breaker was that Dallas needed to send either Niemi or Lehtonen and their extremely pricy contract to Florida in the trade.

Nothing ever panned out between the two sides, and it looks like nothing will right now. The Dallas Stars could definitely use some consistent strength in the crease, especially come playoffs. Bishop could provide that strength. But for now, it looks like the Stars are set to rely on Lehtonen and Niemi to once again carry the load and help lead them to the postseason for the second straight year.

That’s not the worst possible option. As I’ve gone in-depth about in earlier articles, the two-goalie setup can work for the Stars. Last year was the first season that both goalies went from being a full-time starter to a half year starter. They both downsized from playing 60+ games a season to only playing 40 or so.

It’s a difficult transition to make, but both goaltenders handled it rather well. They pushed each other, they held each other accountable, and they were there to fill in for each other if one of them ever went on a cold streak. All in all, they stood next to each other all year. It was disappointing to watch them deteriorate at a critical time in the playoffs.

must read: What Must Happen To Make Bishop A Star?

They still have an opportunity to grow and give a stronger effort this coming year, though. And if they don’t, then Bishop could be a viable option. This year’s trade deadline could very well be one of the most frantic and exciting in NHL history. With the expansion draft looming, teams will more than likely be attempting to trade some players they will not be able to protect in exchange for a valuable addition.

Bishop could very well find his name on the block, and the Dallas Stars could be reaching out to TB with a sizable offer if all that is standing between them and a ticket to the Cup is reliable goaltending.

Until then, dry your tears, abandon the hashtags, and stash the dream in the back of your memory.  The Dallas Stars are more than likely preparing to run with #31 and #32 in the blue paint to start the year. Meanwhile, Bishop is looking at kicking off another season with the Bolts.

Next: Stars Goaltending Duo Could Do Some Damage Next Year

The dream is not entirely dead, but will definitely be delayed. Just have faith in Jim Nill and the goaltending system. Give it a chance, at least to start the year off.