Paul Bissonnette won’t be suiting up with Britain’s Cardiff Devils after all. Fox Sports Arizona’s Craig Morgan reported Sunday that the 29-year-old had landed a deal with the Portland Pirates, minor-league affiliate to the Arizona Coyotes.
Bissonnette worked out an agreement with the British Elite Ice Hockey League Devils on Thursday, but Managing Director Todd Kelman said in a news release Sunday that the team was no longer expecting the enforcer.
“I just heard from Paul [Sunday] prior to our game and he explained that he has been offered a deal in the American Hockey League that he hopes will lead to an NHL deal later this season,” Telman said in a statement posted on the British Ice Hockey website.
Bissonnette, who played 39 games with the Coyotes last season, had landed a preseason tryout with the St. Louis Blues, though he wasn’t able to secure a contract.
Cardiff’s original announcement stated that Bissonnette would join the team on a temporary basis while he looked for work in the NHL. Bissonnette, or BizNasty, as he’s affectionately known by fans, suited up for the Devils during the 2012-13 lockout, when he registered 19 points in 10 games.
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