In his web series, "Road Trippin' with Biz" on the Coyotes' team site, Bissonnette interviews players in cities where they have a personal connection.
His aim is to unlock personality from the players, and despite holding a microphone and traveling with a camera crew, each player seems interacting Bissonnette because of his pro hockey experience, his playful dialogue and his disarming approach while asking questions.
"Guys tend to see me more of a peer than some guy trying to interview them," Bissonnette said. "The guys know I've been a clown for most of my career, and they know I'm going to get my jabs in and that that's what makes good content."
In the first episode, Derek Stepan introduces people to the TriBeCa section of Manhattan, where many of Stepan's former New York Rangers teammates live. But right after that, we learn how the Hastings, Minnesota native ended up playing college hockey at the University of Wisconsin, before they staked out Taylor Swift's apartment building.
"We brainstormed ideas on how to make some fun content for fans to get to know the young guys," Bissonette told NHL.com. "We tried to think out of the box a little bit and get the to talk about as little hockey as possible. I think it's gone well."
Watch: Youtube Video
Bissonnette said once other players saw Stepan's episode, they knew they could cut loose on his show.
Bissonnette has toured Philadelphia with Zac Rinaldo and Montreal with Anthony Duclair. The most recent episode features Bissonnette and Max Domi touring around Toronto, where Domi was born. In it, Domi reveals that he changed from wearing No. 13 to 16 when he learned that former Philadelphia Flyers great Bobby Clarke also had Type 1 diabetes.
Watch: Youtube Video
It's all part of Bissonnette's transition from the ice to the creative side since announcing his retirement from pro hockey April 21.
He directed, wrote and produced a six-episode mockumentary-style web series called "BizNastyDoes BC," where he toured British Columbia with players, including Connor McDavid, Seth Jones, Shea Weber and Brendan Gallagher. They all took turns poking fun at Bissonnette's playing career or things like his willingness to sport a Speedo.
Bissonnette has long been one of the NHL's biggest characters, especially on Twitter where he has more than one million followers, which has made him popular despite playing only 202 NHL games. But he insists "Road Trippin'" is not about bringing more attention to himself.
"It's fun," Bissonette said. "As long as the guys are happy how they're portrayed and the team's happy, then that's all that matters to me."
