Phoenix Coyotes enforcer Paul Bissonnete will get his chance to appeal an automatic 10-game suspension with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on Sunday afternoon, Fox Sports Arizona reports.*
To review, “BizNasty” received that suspension for leaving the bench to start a fight during a preseason game against the Los Angeles Kings in reaction to a hit teammate Rostislav Klesla received from Jordan Nolan. (To some controversy, Nolan didn’t receive a fine or suspension for the check.)
It’s unclear how, exactly, the 28-year-old hopes to get out from under the punishment. Fox Sports Arizona delved into the possibilities a bit:
It’s unclear on what grounds Bissonnette and his agent, Mark Guy will appeal. Guy did not return e-mails, but NHL spokesperson John Dellapina said last week that “one of the points of the illegal-line-change rule is to prohibit teams from creating an artificial manpower advantage during an altercation. That’s why it doesn’t matter how aggressive Bissonnette was upon arriving at the scrum -- simply by being there he creates an odd-man situation that could free up a teammate to do damage.”
Maybe they’re merely trying to waste Bettman’s time?
* - The report says it will happen at “noon” but doesn’t clarify if that’s ET or not.