Before playing in the NHL, Bishop played parts of 1 season with the Texas Tornado of the North American Hockey League (NAHL) and 3 years of college hockey with the University of Maine Black Bears. With the Tornado, Bishop led them to their second National Championship and Gold Cup and he was named to the first team of the NAHL All-Rookie Team. With the Black Bears, Bishop was named the Rookie of the Month in the months of October 2005 and February 2006. He was also named the Goaltender of the Month by the NCAA's Hockey East conference. He led Maine to the Frozen Four twice. In 2006, they lost in the semi-finals to the University of Wisconsin–Madison and in 2007, they lost to Michigan State University in the semi-finals.