NHL announcer Paul Bissonnette hospitalized, 6 arrested after Ariz. restaurant brawl

Nov. 26 (UPI) -- NHL announcer and former player Paul Bissonnette briefly was hospitalized after intervening in a restaurant ruckus Sunday night in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Bissonnette, who played left wing for the Phoenix Coyotes and Pittsburgh Penguins, was dining Sunday night at a Houston's restaurant in Scottsdale when he said he noticed several men at the bar arguing with the restaurant's manager.

"It was a bunch of drunk golfers," Bissonnette said in a video that he posted on X. "They asked one guy to leave, and then one guy kept getting in the manager's face [and] put his hands on him."

He said the ruckus continued escalating for 30 or 40 seconds before he intervened.

"I just grabbled the guy's arm that was on him," Bissonnette said. "I said, 'Sir, if you continue to harass and assault the staff, we're gonna have problems."

Bissonnette said that's when the group "just started chucking."

Bissonnette said the fight quickly escalated as seven men attacked him and the ensuing fight spilled out into the restaurant's parking lot and the parking area at a nearby CVS pharmacy.

He said he was kicked in the head three times but didn't get knocked out.

"Did go to the hospital," he said, adding he was struck in the face several times but the damage "could have been worse."

The Scottsdale Police Department investigated and confirmed seven men assaulted Bissonnette inside the restaurant and continued while he was outside.

Six of the men have been identified and arrested on one or more charges of misdemeanor disorderly conduct.

One of the suspects, Sean M. Daley, also was arrested for aggravated assault and forgery.

Daley, who is a resident of Lubbock, Texas, was found with a military ID that he admitted was fake, Scottsdale Police Sgt. Allison Sempsis said.

The other five defendants are identified as Henry P. Mesker, John G. Carroll, William J. Carroll, Danny Bradley and Edward J. Jenings.

Bissonnette played for the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 2008-2009 NHL season and the Phoenix Coyotes, now called the Arizona Coyotes, from 2009 to 2014.

He played in 202 NHL games in which he scored seven goals and 15 assists.