Stingrays Give Former Vernon Viper Bishop Qualifying Offer:

On July 1st 2013 the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL)
tendered qualifying offers as submitted by each of its member teams. The ECHL South Carolina Stingrays have eight players that been tendered qualifying offers, one is former Vernon Vipers forward Hunter Bishop.

Bishop is currently playing with the American Hockey League's (AHL) Manchester Monarchs. Bishop started last season with East Coast Hockey League's (ECHL) South Carolina Stingrays before signing a (PTO) Professional Tryout Contract with the Monarchs on February 22nd 2013 where he finished the season. In 24 regular season games with the Monarchs Bishop collected (3-2-5).

Bishop signed with South Carolina on October, 1st 2012. In 48 games last season with South Carolina Bishop collected (24-25-49). This was Bishops third trip to the AHL last season after the Stingrays loaned Bishop to the AHL Lake Erie Monsters on January, 8th 2013 before returning to South Carolina on January, 18th 2013. Bishop went pointless in three games with the Monsters. On January, 25th 2013 the AHL Rochester Americans signed Bishop to a (PTO) Professional Tryout Contract. Bishop was released a day later after playing in just one game with the Americans.

Bishop played parts of the last three years with the ECHL Wheeling Nailers & the AHL Hamilton Bulldogs before missing the entire 2011-12 season with an undisclosed injury. Bishop played parts of three seasons in Vernon (2005-2008). Bishop left Vernon after two seasons and played in just four games at the University of North Dakota during the 2006-07 season before returning to Vernon during the Christmas break playing the remainder of the 2006-07 season playing his final season with the Vipers (2007-2008) before playing the next two years at Ohio State University. In 140 regular season games with the Vipers Bishop collected (93-84-177). On March. 18th 2010 the Montreal Canadiens signed Bishop as a free agent to a two year contract. Bishop attended the Habs training camp the last three seasons before being sent down to the American Hockey League's Hamilton Bulldogs.

Hunter Bishop's Player Profile:

http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=80970

This is posted on the Stingrays website:

Stingrays Announce List of Qualifying Offers

By: Joseph Zakrzewski

North Charleston, S.C. – The South Carolina Stingrays announced today the team’s list of players who received Qualifying Offers. Players who had already signed a contract by June 30 did not need to receive a qualifying offer.

The Stingrays extended Qualifying Offers to the following players: Goaltender Ryan Zapolski, defenseman Ryan Grimshaw and forwards Chris Langkow, Robby Dee, Peter Boyd, Brett Olson, Tyler McNeely and Hunter Bishop.

Each team was entitled to reserve the rights to a maximum of eight qualified players. Of the eight qualified players, no more than four could be veterans (260 regular season professional hockey games played as of the start of the upcoming 2013-14 season). Players on open qualifying offers cannot be traded.

The qualifying offer must remain open for acceptance until August 1 at which time the qualifying offer becomes null and void and the team may sign the qualified player to any salary or may elect to take no further action. Teams that extend a valid qualifying offer to a non-veteran player shall retain the rights to that qualified player for one playing season.

A team that extends a valid qualifying offer to a veteran player will retain the rights to that veteran until Aug. 1. After Aug. 1, if the veteran player is not signed to a contract by the team, the veteran shall be deemed a restricted free agent and shall be entitled to seek and secure offers of employment from other ECHL teams. Restricted free agents may not be traded. When a restricted free agent receives a contract offer from a team other than the team with the player’s rights and the restricted free agent wishes to accept the contract offer, the restricted free agent and the offering member must, within 24 hours, notify the ECHL, the team with the player’s rights and the Professional Hockey Players’ Association. The member with the player’s rights shall have seven days after the date it is notified to exercise its right to match the contract offer.

If a restricted free agent is not signed to either an offer sheet or a contract by an ECHL team by August 31, the player shall be deemed an unrestricted free agent.