DALLAS, TX—The LA Kings have traded backup goalie Ben Bishop to the Dallas Stars in exchange for the Montreal Canadiens’ fourth-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, according to Kings’ General Manager Rob Blake.
The 30 year-old Denver, Colorado native began his career with the Kings on February 26, as a backup for Jonathan Quick. He was traded three days before the NHL Trade Deadline after commencing the 2016-2017 season with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
In addition to Bishop, the Lightning traded a fifth-round selection in 2017 and acquired Kings’ goaltender Peter Budaj and defenseman Erik Cernak in exchange during a seventh-round selection, as well as a conditional 2017 seventh-round selection.
Bishop, an unrestricted free agent who stands at 6 feet and 7 inches tall and weighs 216 pounds, played seven games with Los Angeles during which he cultivated a 2-3-2 record, 2.49 goals against average, and a .900 save percentage.
In 39 games with both Tampa Bay and Los Angeles during the regular season, Bishop attained an 18-5-5 record, a .91 save percentage, and 2.54 goals against average.
In eight NHL seasons, Bishop has played for St. Louis (where he was drafted during the third round of the 2005 draft) and Ottawa, in addition to Tampa Bay and Los Angeles for a total of 270 games, 36 of which were in the Stanley Cup playoffs. His overall record is 148-80-25, and he has cultivated a .919 save percentage, 2.32 goals against average, and 19 shutouts. Bishop was appointed a finalist for the Vezina Trophy in 2013-2014 and 2015-2016.
Bishop will become an unrestricted free agent after July 1; until then, the Stars will have exclusive negotiating rights with the athlete. Stars’ General Jim Nill has described Bishop as “one of the elite goaltenders in the NHL.”
The new fourth-round selection, which the Stars acquired after defenseman Jordie Benn was traded to the Canadiens, has earned the Kings eight picks in this year’s NHL Draft, which is scheduled to take place from June 23 to June 24 in Chicago. The team released the following in a press release:
Kings 2017 Draft Selections:
First Round: One Selection
Second Round: One Selection
Third Round: One Selection
Fourth Round: Two Selections
Fifth Round: Two Selections
Sixth Round: One Selection
Seventh Round: No Selections