Flipping the script on new 32 Thoughts co-host Kyle Bukauskas

Kyle Bukauskas will be the first to admit he’s a little late to the podcast game, but Sportsnet’s long-time rink-side host is officially in, starting tomorrow.

The 31-year-old from Campbell River, B.C. will be joining Elliotte Friedman as the new co-host of 32 Thoughts: The Podcast, which kicks off its season Friday morning.

Due to that new role, hockey fans will soon get to know Bukauskas a lot better, but he took some time to open up a bit ahead of his first show — a bit of a script-flip for someone so used to being the interviewer himself.

SPORTSNET: Where should we start? You can decide.

BUKAUSKAS: Oh man, I’ve got to be honest, I’m always a little sheepish in these spots. And I’m not used to being on this side of the interview and talking about me. So, I don’t know, wherever you want to go. Happy to chat.

What goes through your mind when you hear the name Charles Barkley?

[Laughs.] It’s like you’re jumping through a hoop that’s lit on fire and you come through it on the other side and you’re like, ‘Oh, we didn’t get burned.’ You’re walking that line, right?

But yeah, he’s been incredibly gracious — I think it’s three years in a row now he’s granted us a chance to speak with him during the [Stanley] Cup Final. It’s so cool that he’s there, given his stature and stardom in the sports world, and he’s so easygoing. The last time he was down in Florida, we were standing in our position where we did the interview, and it was still a few minutes before we actually began, so naturally, him standing there, fans see him, ‘Hey Charles!’ they want to get a picture or whatever. And he didn’t say no to anybody. He was just there to have a good time.

Three years in a row it’s been a highlight of the playoffs — and another one this year. One of the games in Dallas during the Conference Final, I took a chance and said hi to Travis Kelce, who was at the game. We were waiting to interview Bryson DeChambeau and Kelce was hanging out in the same suite. But I typically would never do it because of my shy nature…

Wait. You’re shy?

Yes, oh my gosh.

How do you do your job?

I don’t know, I guess I just look at it like I’m talking to a camera as opposed to a group of people. And I understand there’s an audience on the other side of that camera lens somewhere, but where I am, I just see the lens.

But yeah, it’s funny. For years my parents would get comments, they’ll run into people around town, parents of kids that I played hockey with or went to school with or whatever, and the reoccurring theme is: ‘Wow, I never would have envisioned your boy [laughs] of all jobs to get into, to be one where he’s speaking in a very public way.’ And I don’t blame them for thinking that.

Maybe this podcast is a great fit for you. With only a couple people in the studio, you can pretend you’re just talking to Elliotte.

Well yeah, it’s going to be a fascinating experience, because I think I’m one of the last people in the media world to not have done anything podcast-related. Yes, I took my sweet time getting to this point. But yes, it’s going to be a change of mindset for sure. You’re so used to go on television on Saturdays, you’ve got, at max, maybe a minute to try to hit on a couple of different points and so you’re trying to be as concise as possible. And to now switch to more of a longer-form format, I just hope I have enough to say [laughs].

What excites you most about the new role?

Of course, I think the world of Elliotte. He’s been so good to me from when I was just first starting. And I’ve got such admiration, like it is an experience watching him work the phone when he’s in that mode, right? And so, it’s no surprise he’s consistently on top of all the goings on around the [NHL]. And I remember Dave Amber and I having a conversation about this during the playoffs this year, because we were traveling together in the third round and then again in the Final: the amount of times leaving a game, leaving the building and there’s still some fans milling about and how often you heard, ‘Hey Elliotte, love the podcast,’ ‘Hey Elliotte, try the ribs,’ you get a sense of how big a reach that podcast has made.

I’ve been a loyal listener myself from the beginning. I’ve always leaned on what they’ve done and the information they brought every week for staying on top of what’s going on around the league. So, I’ve got a great deal of respect for the audience, the listenership that they’ve built up over this time. I don’t know how I’m going to go about doing this, but I just look forward to just first and foremost being myself and just helping to add to the experience for those that take time out of their day to listen to us.

What new perspective do you bring to the podcast?

I mean, I’m a little bit younger than Elliotte, so I will try to bring that perspective to things when I can. And I think the other thing, too, is that I’m pretty well traveling every week to games on Saturdays and the occasional Wednesday, so to be able to bring that perspective from the rink and any anecdotes and stories from being on the scene there, I plan to do that as well. And then over time, I hope I’ll find my voice, because this is a completely different endeavour that I really haven’t done anything similar to so far in my career.

Who’s funnier between you and Elliotte?

I guess I’ll have to say Elliotte. I could never say myself. Now saying Elliotte, I think that at least gives me motivation to try to change that answer.

Who has better hair?

Oh man, I don’t like saying “me” here as the answer. But I’ll just say it’s not Elliotte [laughs].

Do you get recognized much walking around in Stittsville [the Ottawa suburb where he lives with his wife, Dana]?

Not often. It’s more so if you’re at a game, that’s when it typically happens because I’m usually working, so I’ve got a suit on, sometimes I’ve got the microphone in my hand, so it’s a bit easier for people to connect the dots.

But every once in a while it catches you off-guard, because you don’t expect it. When it does happen it’s just a reminder of how big the hockey fans are not only in Canada but here in Ottawa, and how much they love their Sens. It’s neat. In the summertime, it’s nice to take a break from talking hockey, but it’s good to kind of keep you honest — people want to know what’s going on. And it’s always like, middle of August, people are like: ‘Who’s winning the Cup next year?’ And you’re like, ‘How the heck am I supposed to know that?’

What’s your answer?

I don’t have one.

What’s the most common Sens question you got this off-season?

Oh, ‘Are they gonna make the playoffs this year?’ And I think it’s going to be really close. I remember I was asked the question two years ago and I thought this past season was going to be the one they finally broke through. Of course, that did not happen. But I just like that it’s been a much calmer off-season for them. Like, there isn’t the lingering question over getting the sale of the team finalized and all the stuff that unfolded with the Shane Pinto situation and Pierre Dorion losing his job over the whole Evgeny Dadonov no-trade fiasco from a couple years prior. At this point, there seems there’s none of that going on. They’ve got a new head coach. That was probably the other big question I got: “What do you think of Travis Green?” And I think it was a really good hire. I dealt with him a little bit when he was in Vancouver. I think he’s the right person for where this team is at right now, so I’m really intrigued to see how they work together here going forward.

As a rink-side host now, do you find it difficult to get good answers sometimes given you’re talking to players during games?

Yeah, and that’s still one where I certainly haven’t found the recipe for. That’s always going to be a work in progress. It obviously depends on the person you’re talking to — some are more open than others. It depends what kind of mood they’re in.

And also, how am I asking the question? There’re times where you want to provide context, but if you’re rambling then you’re losing the interest of your interview subject. And frankly, people are tuning in to listen to them, not me. So, you’ve got to keep yourself concise. And it’s just a constant battle of trying to do a little body language reading to see where they’re at and try to meet them where they are, to be respectful of where they are. And also, at the same time, have a conversation that is at least somewhat enlightening. And there are times where it is, there are times where it’s not.

Certainly, you walk away from an interview sometimes and go, ‘Yeah I blew that one.’ Or you walk away going, ‘didn’t matter what I asked, the interview was not going anywhere.’ And through that, thankfully, there are some instances where you’re like, ‘Hey, I think that was pretty interesting.’ It keeps your mind churning to try to find solutions when you’re in those spots.

When did your interest in a career in media start?

It would have been probably as I got into high school. I love the idea of acting. When I was a young kid, I was always big in that. I performed in school plays in middle school and then in high school as well.

Were you ever cast in the lead role?

I was one year, yeah, in Grade 11. There was a play called This Is a Test and I was the lead guy, and it was great…. I really loved that side of it, performing. But as you’re starting to get older, you think “okay, making a career of that may be challenging.” But I also grew up playing hockey and baseball and lacrosse. And I watched a lot of sports every morning before school, like the highlights. And Don Taylor, when he worked for Sportsnet out in Vancouver, was a huge influence. The sense of humour he had, the delivery. It just seemed like the most fun job on the planet.

I thought, well, that’s putting the two passions that I have together. I was really fortunate that I got a chance to intern at one of our local radio stations [99.7 The River] through high school and even for a little bit after graduating. There was a guy there by the name of Warren Andrews who took me under his wing and allowed me to learn and observe and went to bat for me for to his bosses. There I was, I had zero experience, I was just a kid, but he vouched for me to have a chance to do little jobs here and there to learn how the whole radio business worked. I mean, if he doesn’t do that, I’m not sure you and I are having this conversation.

Any parting thoughts? Maybe 32 of them? Or advice for people wanting to get into the industry?

Do I want to get 32 thoughts? Gosh. That’s far too many.Who in their right mind? [Laughs]. The advice thing, I guess now I’ve lived a little bit more life, I remember early on being asked that question and like, how much of an answer have I got? I’ve barely been doing this for any amount of time….

I guess as I’ve made my way through this decade-plus now it’s just: hey, look, you’re not going to fool people, right? In the grand scheme of things, whether that’s your audience, whether it’s your colleagues, your employer. I think over time, that’s what will always ring true. Not that I thought I could fool people. But maybe early on, I was kind of forced to because of how inexperienced I was and getting an opportunity at such a great place, right out of the chute. But in my mind, I knew that wasn’t going to last, so I better learn how to prepare properly, how to do my research, how to get more comfortable on the air, how to be more versatile. Because you never have the sense of “I’ve arrived, and hey, I’ve gotten good at this.” I think there’s always a sense of trying to push yourself to a different level that you’ve never got to. And like a lot of things in life, it’s not linear. There are bumps along the way. But I think that growth-type mindset, of seeing over time how far you can push yourself — and that goes beyond, of course, the broadcasting world — I think it’s kind of neat, the places that you can end up being, right? And if you give yourself a bit of grace along the way, it turns into a pretty fun journey.