TORONTO — Paul Bissonnette has been around the block more than a few times.

At 31, the tattooed funny man nicknamed “BizNasty” has skated in nearly 800 games for 12 teams in five leagues dating back to his first year of junior.

It’s safe to assume Bissonnette has seen some things. And now, through a one-year American Hockey League contract with the Ontario Reign and a tryout with the Los Angeles Kings, he is hanging on to the twilight stage of his playing career.

Never advertised as something greater than a fringe NHL forward, Bissonnette still attends the annual BioSteel Camp — a one-week boot camp held at St. Michael’s College School Arena in late-summer. It is peppered with the game’s brightest present and future stars, whose lives revolve around hockey. There’s foam rollers, supplements and an army of support staff, too.

“In order for me to stay relevant, even at the American League level, I have to do all of these things,” Bissonnette said. “I have to watch what I eat, I have to train just as hard just to keep up with these up-and-comers.”

“There’s so much money to be made now. I know there was back then, too,” he added, referring to his start 15 years ago, “but now it’s so competitive and guys don’t drink (alcohol) as much as they used to. Even young guys are on meal plans and eating healthier. They’re doing (protein) shakes, getting massages.

“The level of professionalism is a lot better. And you don’t really have a choice. In order to develop and compete, you have to do all of those things right away.”

To Dylan Strome, the rangy Arizona Coyotes centre picked two spots behind Connor McDavid in the 2015 NHL draft, anything remotely hockey-related “doesn’t really feel like a job.

“I guess they say hockey season is all 12 months of the year now. I’m trying to get with that as much as possible.”

BioSteel Camp is run by the company’s co-founder Matt Nichol, a strength and conditioning guru whose resume includes work with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Hockey Canada and the San Francisco 49ers. There are no shortcuts on Nichol’s watch, only work and the sprinkling of some light-hearted fun.

The four-day camp comes on the heels of a jam-packed “off-season” for Strome and Florida Panthers top prospect Lawson Crouse. In July and early August, both attended their respective NHL development camps as well as Hockey Canada’s summer evaluation camp for the world junior team.

“It’s what I love to do. Whether it’s building towards hockey in the gym, or on the ice, I enjoy every day,” said Crouse, last summer’s 11th-overall pick.

“I think that’s the passion you need to have. The love I have for the game is incredible. It makes doing everything — working out, waking up early in the morning, sacrificing weekends — much easier.”

It’s as if the infamous Soup Nazi, a character from that memorable Seinfeld episode, is shrieking “No off-season for you!” There isn’t a ton of wiggle room to live a normal 19-year-old life when you’re Strome, Crouse or a peer.

“The amount of skill work they do, the power skating, just the overall development and training these guys do is just crazy,” Bissonnette added, giving kudos to the likes of McDavid and Max Domi.

The times, as Bob Dylan famously sang, they are a changin’.

Or, more accurately, already have.