What is more entertaining to NHL fans than a raucous hockey game at Jobing.com Arena in Glendale Arizona? The answer is, quite frankly, the yet to come commentary by Coyotes tough guy and Twitter virtuoso Paul Bissonnette.

Bissonnette, a self-proclaimed “4th line duster” for the playoff-bound Phoenix Coyotes, has managed to harness Twitter to forge an identity for himself that transcends his role as a sparingly used role player. His treasure trove of one-liners has won him thousands of Twitter followers that, despite his lack of ice time, have turned him into an unlikely magnet for sponsorship dollars.

The end game for Bissonnette was never for Twitter to become a marketing tool. He initially created his Twitter account on the recommendation of former teammate Scottie Upshall and thought it would be fun to use Twitter in a way that suited his style.

“I have no filter and I like it when I get a rise out of people; that makes it fun,” explained Bissonnette in his short-lived Hockey News Blog. “I like to think outside the box and make it fun because that’s my personality.”

Although he currently spends his days as a sparingly used grinder and occasional pugilist, Bissonnette’s off the ice activities make him one of the pioneering professional athletes on Twitter. His consistently hilarious and random comments on the abbreviated social networking website have earned Bissonnette a cult following of over 67,000 followers that includes Yahoo’s Puck Daddy Blog.

“BizNasty” has also forged partnerships with Taco Bell and hockey lifestyle apparel company Sauce Hockey. These niche deals work to maximize the former Pittsburgh Penguin’s marketability, and help to set up a career for Bissonnette after his playing days are over.

Bissonnette is one of just a few professional athletes that have harnessed new media such as Twitter and invested little more than their own time to make themselves into a brand. However, no brand is as unique as the one being forged by Bissonnette.

“It’s taken off,” said Bissonnette in a recent interview with ProHockeyTalk. “I’ve kind of taken it [tweeting] to the next level and people have kind of embraced it.”

Although he seems to have stumbled on this marketing method, more athletes should take a page from Bissonnette’s playbook as a means to connect with fans and sponsors as a means to shape their brand identity. However, like any activity, tweeting does have its potential hazards.

Over the summer, Bissonnette found himself in hot water over his Twitter comments made in jest about Ilya Kovalchuk’s seventeen-year contract being rejected by the NHL. Shortly thereafter, he deleted his Twitter account. Thankfully, Bissonnette came to his senses and created a new Twitter account.

Bissonnette’s Coyotes play the Red Wings tonight in game one of what should be a long and brutal first round playoff series. This is a rematch of last year’s first round series, which saw the upstart Coyotes push the veteran laden Wings to seven games before finally being eliminated. This series will probably be just as tight.

Although Bissonnette may not be a deciding factor in the box score of tonight’s game, one can assume that his presence will be felt on the ice (perhaps a fight), but most certainly shortly thereafter in the Twitter blogosphere, as he continues to shape his brand and sets himself up for life after hockey.

You can follow Bissonnette by clicking here @BizNasty2point0.

Jeff Levine is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is a sports attorney, and the Executive Director of One Sports and Entertainment, International.

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*This story was updated 3/10/11*

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has responded to Air Canada's threat that they would pull sponsorship if Boston Bruins' defenseman Zdeno Chara was not punished for a hit which took place Tuesday against Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty. The Globe and Mail reports Bettman said: “Air Canada is a great brand as is the National Hockey League and if they decide that they need to do other things with their sponsorship dollars, that’s their prerogative,” when asked if he took the threat seriously.

Bettman said people around the NHL have commended the league for the way they handled the Chara hit.

Slam Sports enitially reported that one of the NHL's largest financial corporate backers sent a letter to the NHL demanding “immediate” and “serious” action against Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara for his hit on Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty. Air Canada, who owns naming rights to Toronto's Air Canada Centre and sponsors other Canadian teams, wrote the commissioner's office after the NHL elected not to punish Chara.

"We are contacting you (Wednesday) to voice our concern over (Tuesday night's) incident involving Max Pacioretty and Zdeno Chara at the Bell Centre in Montreal," wrote Air Canada's director of communications Denis Vandal. "This is following several other incidents involving career-threatening and life-threatening headshots in the NHL recently."

"From a corporate social responsibility standpoint, it is becoming increasingly difficult to associate our brand with sports events which could lead to serious and irresponsible accidents; action must be taken by the NHL before we are encountered with a fatality.

"Unless the NHL takes immediate action with serious suspension to the players in question to curtail these life-threatening injuries, Air Canada will withdraw its sponsorship of hockey."

Air Canada reportedly sent his letter to all six Canadian NHL governors. Vandal continued: "While we support countless sports, arts and community events, we are having difficulty rationalizing our sponsorship of hockey unless the NHL takes responsibily to protect both the players and the integrity of the game."

NHL VP Mike Murphy ruled that Chara's hit had “no basis to impose supplemental discipline.”

While some have suggested Air Canada is simply looking for good publicity, the NHL still has a problem on their hands. The head office has faced criticism for the arbitrary nature of nearly every suspension or fine this season. Many players and personnel have expressed confusion about what hits warrant suspension or fine.

It is extremely unlikely Air Canada would pull sponsorship due to one ruling, but the message should be enough for the NHL office to make an effort to clarify its rulings.

Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter

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*This article was updated 3/5/11

Months ago, we pronounced this thing over. Speaking with a high-ranking Coyotes executive about how things would be different under new ownership, he seemed optimistic. The executive talked about having less financial strains on things not just player related like marketing and sales. “Whew, it’s over,” was his general sentiment.

Eggs counted, now for them to hatch…..

The Goldwater Institute has battled against deals to sell the Coyotes from the beginning. They were either right to question the  Jerry Reinsdorf situation or ran him out of town. It seemed GWI was protecting the people of the City of Glendale. Lucky for the ‘Yotes, another buyer for the NHL-run franchise named Matthew Hulsizer dropped out of the sky with a cape on and offered to save the team.

The deal Hulsizer and the city agreed to sounds a little like something Henry Potter concocted.  The city agrees to sell bonds as part of a $197 million plan to help Hulsizer buy the team for between $160 and $170 million. Glendale would pay $100 million to their new owner for the rights to parking revenue and pay him $97 million more to run Jobing.com arena. In turn, Hulsizer would pay off the NHL and the team’s debt to the league.

“An investment….not a gift”

While it’s a risk, if the deal doesn’t go through, ESPN.com said this week, the city will lose its team and more than $500 million. Enter: Goldwater Institute. The Phoenix Business Journal wrote Friday that Goldwater is threatening a lawsuit if Glendale tries to sell bonds. CEO Darcy Olsen, the Journal said, claims the city already owns the parking rights and should not have to buy them for $100 million. The city says that’s incorrect, but Olsen contends Hulsizer should borrow the money to buy the Coyotes, not be given it by the city.

Your move, commish

The Phoenix Coyotes were supposed to have a buyer by Jan 1. Three months later, things are log jammed due to Goldwater’s insistence that the city is getting a bad deal. Bonds cannot be sold until things are cleared up. Since Goldwater seems unrelenting, it becomes NHL commissioner Gary Bettman’s move. The commissioner has not set a timetable for Glendale to work out its deal for the Coyotes, but he may have to soon. The team loses around $20 million per year and the NHL is footing the bill – all while folks in Winnipeg patiently wait in hopes to get their team back.

While ESPN.com’s Scott Burnside questioned  the motives of Goldwater. It appears the city is either guaranteed to lose millions or just likely to lose millions. Bettman has poured his soul into trying to keep this team in Phoenix, but how long can the NHL wait? Certainly not long enough to take another $20 million in debt.

What now?

ESPN's Burnside is reporting Glendale will sue Goldwater Institute alleging the firm interfered with the team's sale by reaching out to potential bond buyers warning them not to purchase the municipal bonds. The NHL hired a former Reinsdorf associate to work with Goldwater to work out the two sides' differences. However, Burnside said, the NHL has reached its breaking point and may have to move quickly if the differences are not resolved.

Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter

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The Associated Press is reporting that the Atlanta Thrashers' owners said they have lost more than $130 million since 2005 and that the franchise is worth $50 million less because of a dispute that ended plans to sell the team.

These number were filed in a lawsuit by Atlanta Spirit, who owns the team, against a city law firm. Atlanta Spirit claims faulty legal work is to blame for the sale not going through.

The suit, according to the Press, claims the owners had been trying to sell the team over the past six years but things came to a halt due to a split with co-owner Steve Belkin. The Boston-based Belkin's shares were finally bought out in December.

Remaining owners of the Thrashers' claim is that the dispute should have ended in August 2005, but didn't because the Atlanta law firm King & Spalding hadn't negotiated a “fatally flawed contract.”

King & Spalding, the suit says, were hired to negotiate Belkin's buyout and give Belkin fair value for his 30 percent stake in the team. Atlanta Spirit says they gave Belkin too much, then tried to conceal their error.

"Instead of quickly buying out their co-owner's interest for a fair price in the fall of 2005, plaintiffs were tied up in litigation for five years, operation of the Atlanta Hawks and the Atlanta Thrashers was impaired and title to the franchises was clouded," the lawsuit said.

While Canada licks its chops in hopes of the Thrashers heading North, the Thrashers sit toward the bottom of the league in attendance and the NHL can't be pleased with more ownership troubles. Atlanta Spirit originally wanted to sell the team in the same range as franchises such as the Tampa Bay Lightning who sold for $204 million, but they say it is extremely unlikely they could sell for anywhere near that price.

Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter

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