Maine recruit leads Tornado to two road wins
December 17, 2004 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Texas Tornado News Release
Texas Tornado goaltender Ben Bishop has accepted an offer to play for the University of Maine in the fall of 2005.
Bishop, who was on an official visit to Maine two weeks ago, received a full scholarship to backstop the Black Bears, who are one of the premier teams at the NCAA Division I level. "We are very proud of Ben and happy for him and his family," said Texas Tornado head coach and general manager Tony Curtale. "We have scouted him for two years, and so far he has had an excellent season for us in goal."
Bishop becomes the fifth player from the 2004-05 Texas Tornado to commit to a NCAA Division I school. The others are Austin Miller (Providence), Brad Cooper (Providence), Nick Mazzolini (Providence), and Matt Krug (Wayne State).
Bishop backstopped the Tornado to two more wins this weekend. On Friday at Springfield, Missouri, Bishop stopped 22 of 23 shots in a 2-1 shootout win against the Spirit. The Tornado offense came alive in the third period and overtime after a subpar first and second period, and the Tornado used a Karl Sellan goal to get the game into overtime and then a shootout where they eventually won 2-1. Nick Mazzolini and Sellan had the two goals in the shootout.
The Tornado trailed 1-0 early in the second period after they gave up a five-on-three power play goal. The offense only managed 14 shots through two periods, but came alive in the third period and overtime with 15 shots combined. Cooper and Bryan Horrigan had the assists on the lone Tornado goal in regulation.
On Saturday, the Tornado traveled overnight for an early afternoon game against the Central Texas Marshals. The Marshals scored on the first shot of the game, but after that, it was all Tornado. It started with a goal from Sellan and continued with two fight wins by Krug and Billy Skwarczewski. That was followed in the second period with goals from Cooper and Tom Train, and finished in the third period with Sellan's second goal and a goal from Justin Liut.
Bishop was solid again between the pipes, stopping 19 of 20 Marshals shots. Bishop joins a growing list of Tornado goaltenders who not only succeed and are heavily recruited when they are with the Tornado, but who succeed after they leave. The first was Ron Vogel, who backstopped the Tornado during the 1999-2000 season and was named NAHL MVP. He later attended the Detroit Red Wings training camp and played in the East Coast Hockey League. Vogel currently plays for the Basingstoke Bison in a European League.
Next was the 2000-01 Robertson Cup Champion tandem of Brandon Crawford-West and Al Montoya. Crawford-West led the league in goaltending for two years, was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2001, and is now the starting goaltender for Miami of Ohio University, while the fresh-faced Montoya later joined the USA National team. Currently, Montoya is the starting goaltender for the University of Michigan and was just named the starting goaltender for Team USA at the World Junior Championships beginning later this month in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Montoya was the sixth overall pick in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Rangers.
Next is Dave McKee. McKee backstopped the Tornado during the 2002-03 season, a season in which he ranked in the top three in league goaltending. McKee went on to Cornell University, where he was a member of the ECAC All-Rookie team last season and is currently ranked third in the nation among NCAA Division I goaltenders.
Finally, is Scott Talbot. Talbot backstopped the Tornado to a Robertson Cup and a National Championship last season. The St. Thomas, Ontario, native is now playing for the University of Calgary Dinos on a full scholarship as a freshman and has already been named as the Canada West Player of the Week.
North American Hockey League Stories from December 17, 2004
- MacNicol earns Defensive Player of the Week honors - Cleveland Barons
- Jets promotion to benefit local organizations - Fargo-Moorhead Jets
- Colin Kingston: Jr. Blues king of the hill - Springfield Jr. Blues
- IceDiggers hope to hold off Cleveland - Alpena IceDiggers
- Kraemer takes weekly honors - Wichita Falls Wildcats
- Bobcats split on the road with Helena - Bismarck Bobcats
- Maine recruit leads Tornado to two road wins - Texas Tornado
- U-18s top Toledo, U-17s swept by Soo - U.S. National Team
- Indians leave the past, now living in the present - Soo Indians
- Bozeman battles inconsistency - Bozeman Icedogs
- Bulls soar in five-goal third period - Billings Bulls
- Phantoms hold first place despite losses - Mahoning Valley Phantoms
- NAHL announces first All-Star Festival - NAHL
- Blizzard top Bobcats, 5-2 - Alexandria Blizzard
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
