After some speculation surrounding who would start in goal on New Year’s day for the Dallas Stars, it is confirmed that veteran Ben Bishop will start in goal for the hosts at Cotton Bowl. At the Winter Classic media conference prior to the game on Wednesday morning, Stars interim head coach Rick Bowness confirmed that Bishop would be between the pipes in a big game against the Predators. “Bishop is in the net,” Bowness stated prior to puck drop.
While Bishop was widely speculated to be the starting goaltender for the home team at Cotton Bowl, there were some debate after consecutive poor starts on December 20th and the 22nd. Bishop shut down the doubters in his final game of 2019 against the visiting Colorado Avalanche, backstopping his team with a 41-save performance.
Bishop has enjoyed a stellar season, posting a .926 SV% and a 2.34 GAA. Bishop has been preparing for the Winter Classic for quite some time now and even had a new mask fashioned for it should he be given the game’s starting nod. The mask pays tribute to the Cotton Bowl and Dallas is the perfect spot for the annual outdoor hockey game.