Suspects identified in brutal assault to former NHL player Paul Bissonnette in Scottsdale Arizona

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Joshua Deeds
November 26, 2024 (7:01 PM)

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Former NHL Enforcer, and now NHL on TNT Analyst, Paul Bissonnette recently stuck up for the less fortunate.

He would challenge a group of golfers outside of a restaurant in Scottsdale, Arizona at a place called "Houston's".

«I get up and I go over. I grab the guy's arm and I say, 'Listen buddy, if you keep harassing and assaulting the staff here, we're gonna go outside and we're gonna have some problems,' » said Bissonnette, a native of Welland, Ont., who played 202 NHL games between 2008 and 2014, largely with the Phoenix Coyotes. «The minute that left my mouth, the guy beside him starts throwing punches. And next thing you know there's about four guys swinging at me.»

Bissonnette would stick up for the staff at "Houston's" and of course, it was mainly staff consisting of women. Easy prey for abusers involved.

The altercation would begin, by defending the assistant manager from an customer who was sceaming at them. He'd grab the belligerent customers arm and tell him to quit disrespecting the staff, and the customers friend would start throwing punchs, beginning the melee.

Bissonnette would attempt to de-escalate the situation by removing the unruly customers from the restaurant, and would take the fight outside.

He'd recount the situation to Marek, and after fists would start flying, the brawl would end up outside. While he's used to taking blows as an enforcer in the NHL, being outnumbered put him in a precarious situation.

«We're in the middle of the bar area and I am just throwing. I'm eating punches. I'm getting pushed against the bar. My shirt gets ripped off.»

The fight would escalate when it left "Houstons" and he'd hold his own. Bissonnette would embody "the code" to this day.

He'd find himself on the ground, after holding his ground against five attackers, and would find himself eating boots, and would get kicked in the neck as well. He'd later to have to find refuge in a CVS, in the strip mall.

«I'm just glad I got in that CVS, although the lady working the CVS was like, 'Sir, you can't be in here.' And I'm like, 'Ma'am, there is a pack of hyenas out there that is ready to attack me if I leave the store.'»

The belligerents involved will face justice, as six men were arrested who were involved in the assault.

Bissonnette estimated that the fight lasted from three to three-and-a-half minutes, but the buildup in the bar gave time for the police to eventually arrive.

Six men were arrested and face charges related to assault and disorderly conduct, police confirmed to Sportsnet.

But for now, Bissonnette's next goal regarding the scenario is to name-names, and deliver the kind of vengeance which will sastify himself, and those involved in the altercation.