I'm taking this with a very small grain of salt.
Paul Bissonnette, whom every one lovingly calls BizNasty, is looking for a new home after the Phoenix... ugh... Arizona Coyotes opted not to re-sign the 4th line tough guy.
According to his agent, Mark Guy, Bissonnette has interest from at least "5-6 teams" and the Washington Capitals appear to be one of them.
Per Alex Prewitt of the Washington Post:
“Right now he’s just looking for a good organization where he can contribute more than he’s been able to, to date, in the last couple years in Phoenix,… Mark Guy said Friday by telephone. “He wants to be in a position where he can compete for a solid fourth-line position and be a great team guy. He wants to be in an organization where there’s a chance to win, as most guys do, and looking forward to showing how hard he’s worked to improve his skill level and skating over the last couple years.…
Bissonnette's salary, according to Cap Geek was $750K last season, and the Capitals, with a hair over $1M in cap room could easily bring him to play 4th line minutes. But why would they?
Unless GMBM is ready to make some spooky moves and trim the roster down in order to fit BizNasty, I can't really see the point in signing him. The Caps already have a few tough guys in Tom Wilson, Aaron Volpatti, and Michael Latta. While they aren't as popular on Twitter as Biz, those three players can offer more than 2-3 minutes a night of roughing up the opposing team.
That's not a knock against Bissonnette at all, but he's not exactly going to score 8-10 goals or kill penalties.
However, Bissonnette is a character player and a good guy in the locker room, from what I understand. He has a good attitude towards his role and knows that, while he won't ever get top-6 minutes, he contributes in a way that can be valuable to a team looking for a spark between periods or during practice.
The Capitals have been guilty the last few years of having a stale locker room. They have been blamed for their lack of leadership, and perhaps by getting a guy like Bissonnette, the Caps think they can add a little more energy to the lineup.
Perhaps.
If GMBM is truly interested in bringing Paul Bissonnette on, there could be another change on the way to ensure there is enough room on the wing (maybe trading for a center?) Tom Wilson would also benefit from Biz's presence as well. By not having to be stuck on the fourth line in a "bruiser"-type role, Wilson could see minutes on the third line or possibly move up to the second line if he develops quickly and positively. Wilson's role last season was limited to using his fists too much, and he has potential to be a 20 goal scorer - remember that slick goal between Kuznetsov and Wilson at the end of last season?
Whatever the case, the Caps really don't need to spend the last million bucks they have on a fourth liner - I don't care who he is. It would be fun to see Bissonnette in a Caps jersey tweeting all over DC, and I'm sure his personality would attract a lot of attention that Ted Leonsis would enjoy, but it just doesn't make any sense.
But what do I know?
More to come...
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