More than a few people were surprised to see Andrei Vasilevskiy start in the Tampa Bay Lightning’s net against the Buffalo Sabres tonight. It may not be a coach’s decision, however, as NHL.com reports that Ben Bishop was hurt during warm-ups.
Here’s a description of the troubling scene:
Bishop was hit in the midsection with a puck about 10 minutes into practice and stayed down for a few moments before leaving the ice to see a trainer. Lightning coach Jon Cooper said Bishop took a shot to a sensitive area and his status would be decided in warm-ups.
While Vasilevskiy has shown signs of being a rare thing for the Lightning (a competent backup), the Lightning can’t be pleased about seeing Bishop hurt a little more than a month from the postseason. Tampa Bay obviously has to hope this is only a minor issue, then.