Don Cherry has had enough.
He wants the National Hockey League to do more to protect its goaltenders.
In an appearance on Coach’s Corner with Ron MacLean Monday night, Cherry pointed to several instances of opposing players crashing into Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Ben Bishop during the post-season.
“I’ve been watching this for 30 years and (I) have never seen anyone knocked around like (Ben) Bishop,” Cherry said. “It’s got to change next year. It’s ridiculous. It’s harder to play goal than it ever has. They have to do something.”
At the same time, Cherry says that Bishop deserves plenty of credit for his toughness, especially considering that he is playing through an undisclosed injury that caused him to miss Game 4 of the Stanley Cup final.
“This guy has a lot of courage,” Cherry said of the 28-year-old Lightning netminder. “He’s been terrific and it’s going to be a shame when he loses.”
Bishop has accumulated a 13-10 record with a .920 save percentage and 2.18 goals-against average in 24 playoff games this season.