It was a long journey to the NHL for former tough guy Paul Bissonnette.
The 32-year-old enjoyed five years in the OHL from 2001-05 and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2003. After graduating from junior hockey, Bissonnette alternated between the East Coast Hockey League’s Wheeling Nailers and American Hockey League’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins from the 2005-06-2007-08 seasons before ultimately getting his shot with the Pittsburgh in the 2008-09 campaign. From there, the Welland, Ontario native played 202 NHL games before ending his career in the AHL. Today, he serves as a member of the Arizona Coyotes’ hockey team.
Bissonnette appeared on the ‘Spittin Chiclets’ podcast and recalled a hilarious memory from his time with the ECHL’s Nailers. In his early days, the scrapper explained how he defeated the same opponent twice in a fight, and to rub it into the “little rat’s” face, he fearlessly skated onto the ice wearing his team’s WWE title belt for warmups.
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Well, that took guts.
The best part of the story is arguably what happened after the incident. $150 dollars is miniscule compared to what Bissonnette was able to make during his NHL career, so we’re sure he doesn’t have any regrets. And who knew the guy was a two-time ECHL all-star? Though he could never hit his offensive stride in 'The Show', Bissonnette racked up 69 points in 101 games, good enough for a .683 points per game average.
Despite his retirement, Bissonnette remains a legend among hockey fans and its stories like this that has earned him such a large following. It’s just one of many hilarious stories from his illustrious six-year playing career.
(H/T Spittin’ Chiclets)
