Empty Netters Podcast - Taylor Kitsch Talks Friday Night Lights, His Hockey Fights, Red Wings Fandom, & Dark Wolf | EP.223

Episode Date: August 26, 2025

Taylor Kitsch, star of the Amazon Prime series The Terminal List: Dark Wolf should have been an NHL player! Bet you didn’t know that! The boys chop it up with Tim Riggins himself as they talk Detroit Red Wings obsessions, junior hockey glory days, Friday Night Lights, and Taylor’s start into acting. Plus, Taylor is doing incredible work at Howler’s Ridge supporting people in need, and he’s taking incredible photographs as he slowly becomes a pro with the camera. NEW EPISODES EVERY TUESDAY & THURSDAY! PRESENTED by BetMGM. Download the BETMGM app and use code “NETTERS” and enjoy up to $1500 in bonus bets if you lose your first wager! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So I went under the bumper in the front and hunkered in with the long lens. And that polar bear was coming straight at me. Ice is ready. And we are back with another episode of the Empty Netters podcast brought to you by BetMGM. I am your host, Dan Powers. And with me, a lot of people forget this, but I don't. For at least a year of his life, he wore one of those weird little Samuel L. Jackson scally caps. It was a Nike one.

It was black and red and you look like a fool. Chris Powers. What? As always? That's not true. You remember that thing? That's not true. You don't remember that hat?

No. Oh, it's still probably in your archive drawer in our parents' home. Oh, sorry, I know what you're talking about. Yeah. I didn't even know what that hat was. There's like a little kangled Nike hat. You wore it every day. Yeah.

I had class. Not anymore. You are ass. Class or ass. You're ass. Dude, today is a special day. So one of the most certain I've ever been in my life that I was meant to be best friends with the person. Yeah.

The interview that you are about to listen to is some of the most fun I've had doing this job. Without a doubt. Without a doubt. It was just all, it was so many things that I love all together. I know. Taylor Kitch is on the podcast. Many of you know him as Tim Riggins at Friday Night Lights. He is in Terminalist Dark Wolf coming out tomorrow when you're listening to this.

27th of August. Amazon. It's just a phenomenal award-winning actor, a phenomenal award-winning person doing so many cool things. Talk about hockey. We talk about his career. We talk about his philanthropic work and just what a good guy is. Talk about life. Talk about life.

Don't want to waste any time. Let's get right into it. Please enjoy this interview with Taylor Kitch. We are joined today by a Kelowna, British Columbia native who started playing hockey at age three. He was a point per game player for the Queens Park Pirates. Wow. He played junior hockey. Holy shit.

Come on, dude. Play junior hockey in the BCHL for the Langley Hornets who also played juniors for the Bonneville Pontiacs, the Fernie Ghost Riders, the Southeast. Keep going. This is going to be the first. The whole interview, gentlemen. Yeah, yeah, yeah. If you win suitcase. The whole time.

The whole time. Southbeast Blades and the Esteban Bruins had a knee injury at 20 that derailed his career when he pivoted to acting where he's been in countless hit movies and TV shows. Been nominated for 13 awards has won three of them to name a few nominated for the Critics' Choice Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series for Pain killers and won the Gold Derby Award for ensemble of the year for Friday Night Lights. Come on. But most importantly, he's my D partner.

Let's go. There we go. Welcome to the empty-hettters podcast. There we go, gentlemen. Thanks for having me. That's an incredible intro, by the way. How many of those junior teams took you all the way back right there? Dude, I think this is going to be the whole, the majority of this interview, man.

It's just like, I have stories for fucking days about ghost riders to a line brawl. against Weyburn Red Wings. One of my first games for Estevan was a lime brawl in Weyburn. I jumped, I don't think actually that wasn't the time I jumped the bench. But I think the more east you go, and this isn't like a jab to any of the leagues. Like obviously I wasn't good enough or didn't do enough to stay in most of them. Yeah. But it was like the grittier it got.

Oh, that's a fact. That is a fact. So, and I would go, no problem for most of the time, but damn. Like, you're looking in warm up and you're like, oh, shit, who am I calling out? Right. Because it's inevitable. Oh, yeah. It's going to happen.

Yeah. I promise you it's going to happen. Yeah. You also, so many of these teams have such legit names. Yeah. It's one of the best rosters I've ever seen. The Pontiacs, the Ghost Riders, the Blades, the Bruins, the Pirates. It's some pretty sick unies, too, Kitch.

Oh, yeah. They had some six letters. The ghost riders are sweet. Ghost riders are sweet. The Pontiacs is great. I think I played nine or ten for Bonneville. Oh my God. We fucking.

So I was 19 in Bonneville and I wasn't going to school, obviously. So you had to have a job or do something with your life. And I think Grant Stevenson was my roommate who played for the sharks. Yeah. Um, great dude. And, um, and Eric Lodge was our captain, incredible player. I think he went CIA you or something. But good team, great guys. I remember being like the coach was like, hey, you guys got bingo night and then just walks out of the room. And I'm like, new, don't know what's happening. And we're fucking going through. And I'm like, hey, man, who's, who's done bingo

night here? I guess I'm on board. And then we. go, and I'm not kidding, man, you probably can't see 10 feet. There's so much smoke. Yeah. So we get into Bingo Night, and it's like I was a runner. So someone said like, oh, I won. I'm ripping down this, you know, huge aisle, making sure, clarifying all this. And then I say, yeah, you won or not.

So that was like three hours. Yeah. I'm like running up and down aisles in this smoke-filled auditorium. No joke. We had practiced the next morning. All three of us coughing fit on the ice. Like gassed out after the first drill. And you're like, what is wrong with me?

But that's one of my favorite memories, man. We have so many laughs up there too. Dude, I love that. You do that. And then 20 years later, you're in Only the Brave. and you're like, this is chump change, dude. Yeah, no shit. Training for this is nothing.

But, man, you started playing hockey at three years old, which I love like any good Canadian boy does. And then I'll tell you, being a suitcase in juniors is impressive. Like, that's not something that happens. And that hit list is crazy. But also, I need people to know, you were no joke, dude. Like, you were a legit player putting up unbelievable points. And is it true? I want to hear the grind of being on all these.

teams like you're talking about. But we heard that you got some D3 looks and some offers. Do you remember any of the schools that were barking up your tree? Yeah, I do. So I tore I had D1, a lot of D1 looks. Okay. Bro, when you were a 16 year old playing junior A, you were completely on the track of like, I'm getting a D1 scholarship and I might like the league.

Yeah, fuck yeah. I was up in trail, man. And it was like the most heartbreaking fucking moment. It was just a fork in the road moment where you're like, oh my God. So I played incredible. And Tim Fragel and the captain were my roommates. And great dudes, 20-year-old, 19-20-year-old guys.

I was fighting, scoring, playing with these guys. Had an incredible exhibition games. And then a kid came down. He was a local from the dub. Wade Dubowitz was our goalie who was on the islanders. Oh, yeah. Really great, nice guy. We had a great team.

And I was literally like playing the best hockey in my life. And if you've ever been to that Smoke Eater arena, I don't know if they've changed it. It's been a long time. But our dressing room and then the coach's room was right across the hall. And it was like the bleachers. It was like a mini closet. Yeah, he's Harry Potter in there.

Yeah. Tiny. And we were after just like a. morning skate or something and I thought he was going to sign me. Fuck. And this is like late in exhibitions and I've been playing well like I said and he comes in calls me. I go in there and he's like, yeah, man, I want to thank you for coming.

I want to, you know, I want to just, you know, you're a great kid. Go get stronger. Go maybe play junior B. And I was like, what is happening right now? I'm like first on the team and points in exhibition and I fought the guy you asked me to fight, beat the shit out of them at center ice. I'm 16. Yeah.

Like you're doing all this. And you're buzzing. Buzin. And it was this kid that came down from the dub that was a local and I walked in the room. And I told them I went to the guys, my roommates that I was gone. And they literally thought I was joking. And packed my shit, went home and I was absolutely crushed. Oh, dude.

That's your whole world has come to a screeching halt. in that moment. It's horrible. It really like everything does. And when you're like all legs in one basket, you're 16, you've said your goodbyes to your girl, to your fucking, your best mates, you're like, hey, I failed every class. It don't matter. I'm going pro. It's like, everything is online at that point. And then he's like, hey, thanks for coming. Yeah. That return home is crushing dagger. A seven-hour drive back from the court Moody.

Oh my God. That was tough, man. That was tough. And then the next year they asked me back and I said no. No way. But yeah, it was a human suitcase forever. I went and played, I think, two games

with the Ghost Riders and then they offered good, good money. Yeah. And I was 19. Oh man. I had this fucking,

no one knows these stories. Yeah. Yeah. I had this fucking F-150 rust box gray, dual tanks. God. And I think it was, I don't know what that drive was.

It was like 10 hours from Bonneville to, what do you call it? Fernie. And so he puts me up an hotel. I get there. Oh, I had one. CD for this drive, by the way. You listen to it 25 times.

What was it? Oh, my God. It's, I'm going to find the song. I can do it. I can give you obviously every lyric. It's a country song, old school. It's about singing under the stars. Doon, do it goes, oh my God. I'll figure it out. You'll get it.

You'll get it. Ten hours. And listen to that fucking CD. God knows how many times. And they're like, okay, we're going to pay you like, a pretty good rate, whatever a month and all this. We're waiting for a billet. We're going to cut this kid, blah, blah, blah. But will you play with us sign here in good faith?

And I'm like, yeah, man, let's go. And so, oh, man. So we went on a fucking road trip. I think it was a back to back. We're in their bar and they come to ours. I'm not pumping my own tires, but I laid a fucking kid out so bad there that his stick ended up in like third, fourth row

in the fucking building. And then I had to obviously fight. But it was, man, I had a good time. And then all of a sudden he's just like, hey, we're not paying you what we promise. And I just packed my shit, drove home. BAL. Same CD again.

Same CD. Fernie to back to Port Moody. And then I was like trying to convince other junior teams to give me a try. And that was tough. and then I called I was like cold calling teams dude this is crazy yeah that's so tough

and then the Estevan coach who was really good to me obviously he said yeah come on out we got a card for you and that was a totally different style of stick for sure I could skate really well that was like my biggest attribute

but and good shot but man I had Brad Haroff you can look this guy up yeah toughest guy I've ever played with one of top three for sure he was my roommate in Estaband he's the coach of Regina I think yeah yeah yeah shit wow

dude this guy was smaller than me hair would cover his numbers holy shit and I remember like No joke, probably. He was coming up and down from the dub. If I remember correctly, the nicest fucking guy. And I played on his line.

So, God damn, how tough was I? Yeah, seriously. This guy would skate, and he's no joke, like 510, 165. He would, if I remember, but he was, he was smaller than me for sure. We would play in Flynn Flon, which is a gong. show. Yeah. And we'd had security on our bus. And I didn't know any of this shit existed, except in like slap shot. At Medcan, we know that life's greatest moments are built on a foundation of good health, from the big milestones to the quiet winds. That's why our annual

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Yeah. And Brad would go by their bench and like literally stop, talk to their heavyweight and just politely ask them to come over the bench. And I would skate by him and be like, oh, my God. Yeah, like, what are you doing? This is going to be, and obviously a line brawl would break out, but it was, he was just a beauty of a guy, man. And really, really tough guy. And then, of course, I got traded to Manitoba.

I think I was right off a reserve, which was incredible. Yeah. Man, that was actually some of the most fun I ever had playing. Because at that point, I'm like, shit. Enjoy it. Yeah. They paid, I think, a thousand bucks a week or something.

And really good people. Great. I still am in contact with my billet girl. Like they became sisters at the time to me. Dack. Started with D their last name. But anyways, they're great people.

But we had a fucking blast playing there, man. And then how I got back to the BCJ was my best mate, still my best mate of 30 years. Clark. He played a cup of coffee with the Red Wings, which is another great fucking story, which is obviously my team growing up. Yeah, yeah. And he was a fighter when he was 18 on Langley Hornets and then played 19 as an assistant captain, I think. And then 20, no one would touch this guy, man. Yeah, fuck. Tough guy. And so he ended up getting a four-eyed scully to Iona college. And he was our captain, really good dudes.

And he's one of my best mates now. And man, he called Rick Lans, who was our coach. And he's like, I got to, we got one. I think you could have like four 20 year olds on a team or something at the time. And so he's like, you got to bring kitchen. You'll love him. And I was training like a fucking madman, knowing it's my last year. Yeah, yeah.

And I came out of the gate so hot, fighting. me and Clarkie would, I mean, he would take the heavyweights and I'd take middle heavies. And, man, I remember in Chilawak. I won't tell too many crazy stories. No, this is amazing. This is fantastic. These are the war stories. So we're in the whack.

And there's a guy named Bobby Henderson. You can look him up. He's a coach now, I think. Great dude. His dad's a great hockey mind. Great guy. He held my older brother out, who played in the whack, my older brother. who's a sick player.

And so we didn't like the whack. It's 40 minutes away, not even. And they had a shithole barn at the time. No joke. We're getting candy, fucking fruit thrown at us in warm-ups and shit. Incredible. Our goalie stopped on the blue line and stretching, eating the skittles that were thrown at us.

Another good buddy of my Lucas friends. and I'm setting this up because it's worth it. Yeah, yeah. Lucas Brands and who went to Mancato on a full ride. Beauty of a guy. A bleeder though. Yeah. And he'll tell you even now, he has no right dropping the gloves.

So it would be like Clark, me, this kid named Mack Rines, and maybe another guy that would even like entertain the idea of dropping the midst. So we weren't a tough team. except for Clarkie. And he was the toughest guy in the league. And so we had like some stature, but we're in the whack, and they run our goalie.

And I'm in the back corner for some reason. I don't even know why, because I was a right winger and I should have been with my D man. But they fucking run our goalie. Fuck, now you got no choice. He drops his gloves. Yeah.

He had no right. dropping, but he had to. He knows the code, obviously. He's getting absolutely pummeled by this guy. And he had blonde hair, and it literally looks like you dipped his head in red pink. And fucking put him back up. And so I look across my zone, and there's Bobby Henderson. And he's a heavyweight in the league.

Yeah. And he was a fighter in junior. or be at 14 or 15 years old. So this kid could fucking chuck them. I drop my gloves across the fucking zone and make eye contact with Henderson. And I'm like, I got to go. My girlfriend at the time is in the stands. And I look over and my two other line mates, one kid from the dub, just came down from the Vancouver Giants, will not fight.

Yeah. Yeah. The other guy, I won't name them because it's really like, it's fucking sacrilegious what they did. This is go time, dude. I'm skating over to Bobby Henderson, take off my bucket. He takes off his, it's a long skate. Yeah. Yeah, you've got a lot of time to think about it.

He's got 20 plus pounds on me. He's a big boy and probably a hundred more fights than I had. So I'm like, all right, I'm in one. And it's right in front of our bench. I look over and those two forwards jump over onto our bench. No, dude. Come on. Yes.

Oh, my. So now it's five on three. And I, Clark is on the bench and he's trying to push over the forwards to back to go fight. Do your job. Get out there. He's trying to chuck him over the back on the, you can't make this shit up. Yeah. No.

I broke my nose. And the refs are holding, there's another kid, God bless him, getting absolutely pumped. And Brandon was his name. So we're getting absolutely smoked. You can't even see the Hornet on my jersey. There's so much blood on it. Yeah, you're leaking for sure. I got Bobby well too.

And it was more of a draw, I think, and I could be flattering myself. But we're so tired because the refs are holding the other guys. He's like, are you fucking good, Kitch? Are you good? Yeah, yeah. I'm like, yeah, man, I'm good. I'm fucking good. Yeah, please.

So much blood. And I go down in the tunnel. We had a great trainer. And it's mayhem, right? The crowd's loving and all this. And I'm in the tunnel and the trainer comes and I'm standing there, like obviously jazzed up. Yeah. Yeah.

And I'm screaming up into our bench at the two guys that went on that jumped the boards. At the two cowards. Yes. Like truly. And so the trainer comes and he puts his... Oh, fuck. I hate this part. Right here.

And he's like, just fucking take a breath. Yeah. And he just put it like it wasn't a crazy break like Tim Hunter or something. But it was like you could hear it and feel it. Oh, yeah. So the beauty was I'm down in the tunnel getting my nose done. And obviously Clarkie's up next. Yeah, oh shit.

Dude, he went berserk. Center ice draw. And all I hear, I hear it all happening. Yeah. And the fans are like the ooing and awing. And then it gets quiet. Yeah. Which is like he grabbed their toughest guy, hammers them, goes into their bench,

tries to fucking grab their next tough guy and bring him over. And then we had that Mack Ryan's kid who was fighting too. And then we lost. I think we got smoked that night. And then we played him the next night. Yeah, fuck. In Langley, no fights. Yeah.

Everyone's broken, dude. We were fucking broken. I remember having, like, the best black guys you've ever seen. Yeah, for sure. And I'm so proud of them. And, dude, I got on that bus, and I ripped those guys in front of the whole team. It's so fucking hard, man. Oh, I would have, I would have lampooned.

I can't leave him back to play. They should have hitchhiked tone. Yeah, totally. Yeah, so what happened was the kid got cut from the dub. He got snipped. And he was a sick player, but he's just, once you do that, and then I think they kept, Glenn was the other guy. I won't say his last name.

You know who you are. Yeah, Glenn. Dude, going for a change when there's a line bra going on is some of the most spine shit I've ever heard in my life. It's unacceptable. In the whack, too. Yeah, exactly. Of all places, you know, this is a rival.

You play eight times. Yeah. Right, dude. Come on. So, that's one of my favorite craziest. My girlfriend was bawling her eyes out, by the way. That's why I mentioned. Yeah, she's fucking sideways.

Yeah. She sees the blood on the jersey and she's like, he's dying. Yeah, he's literally bleeding out there. I'm dead. I'm dead. It's ridiculous. And even Bobby, the next time I saw him, he was like, that's a, how of a tilt.

Yeah. That's when you know it was, yeah, when you're getting the respect from the other, yeah, when the other guy, that goddamn,

nice full. Like, holy shit. But yeah, man, it was such a journey. And I think with all that, you hear, or how stubborn I am, man,

I just won't quit. And that's really shaped me for my career, man. It's always the guy that just outworked or out prepped or whatever it is.

And no contingency plan after that after I, went and started studying acting. So, um, yeah, that was the journey, man. I owe so much to the game, man. God. Dude, it's the best. It's the, it's the greatest school you can go to. There's no doubt about it. It really is. Yeah, it really is. It really is. And it's the cliche of the losses is what shapes you, but it's truly the downs that it's what you're capable of, you know. Yeah. No doubt about it. I, uh, I don't want you to, uh, to dish any trade secrets, but I do have to ask,

Can you share with us your lace secret, your skate lace secret? Oh, yeah, of course. Did I tell you this? No. How do you know this? Dude, we go deep, brother. We go deep. Fucking rights.

So anybody, any kids watching this, I love a tight, tight skate up top. And so when you tie up your laces, you go once through and around. All you got to do to keep them that tight the whole game, go twice around and then do your bunny ears. Yes, dude. Okay. How this could change everything. And obviously I used wax laces. I don't think.

Yeah, yeah, you have to. Like, come on. But yeah, that was the way, man. That's, I still do it. Was this just trial and error? Or did someone teach you this? Someone when I, man, it goes all the way. My dad wasn't around.

So I had like usually the coach or something. one time I skates when I was super young. Yeah. And he did it and taught me that. And I kept it ever since, man. It's fucking huge. It's epic. I heard it worked like you can do this on your dress shoes at weddings.

Yeah, do it all my dress shoes, my moto boots. Fuck yeah. No brainer, dude. Yeah. No brain. There's nothing worse than an untied shoe lace. So we're cutting this out. It's huge.

And dude, you, like we said at the top, obviously you got to do Team Lemieux with the All-Star celebrity shootout. Yeah, that was fucked up. Yeah, dude. And you, you know, we saw the one-on-one you had with Wayno and, yeah, come on. Dude, and you're, you know, boys with a bunch of the guys, but you're sitting on Hank's pod. We did the, um, L.A. skate this past year for the Wildfires charity. That was so fun. How, how cool has it been that when you kind of go, okay, I'm done playing juniors, that part of my life is over? How cool has it been to kind of have hockey come back into your life so fully? More fucking stories. Um, I love this shit, by the way.

I never talk about this. Obviously, that top 100, it was the Century Game or something. Remember that? Yeah, it was insane. So sick. So I had Yuri Curry on my right and Larry Robinson on my left in the dressing room. And Robitai's a good friend. He's an amazing guy.

You guys know. Yeah, yeah. Luke's the best. He really is, man. And he should be way cockier, to be honest. That's so true, actually. The way he walks around out. Here's a good little anecdote.

Obviously, Eisenman was my everything. And so he asked me to play in the 100-year anniversary of the game. And it was like, God knows how many Hall of Famers in that game, right? I think it was like in the 20s. It was insane, dude. Oh, yeah. It was so crazy. And I still talk to Pronger all the time and who sent me a Canada jersey that's downstairs,

all signed from the Olympics. But so Luke calls or texts and he's like, hey, here's the Century game. Are you like interested? And I'm like, is Eisman playing? And he's like, he's not committed yet, but you know, we're trying. And then I'm like, well, let me know if Eisman's playing and I'm probably in. And he's like, are you serious? And I'm like, Luke, I'm probably in, obviously.

But I'd love to play. if Eisenman's in, can you please make them on my team and I'm fucking in. And he's like, okay, I'm getting back to you. And he sends me like a few weeks passes by and asks me again. I'm like, all right, I'm in. But is Eisenman playing?

Like, what's going on? And he goes, you do know I'm the highest scoring right winger to ever play the game, don't you? And I go, no, no, I know, but is 19 going to dress? Yeah. And just this back and forth

It was amazing. Yeah. And so he obviously didn't. And I was in warm up. And Ray Bork, like, pokes the back of my knee. And he's like, shit, kid, you can skate. Where'd you play? And I'm like, oh, my God.

I'm telling this story. And I'm like, you don't want to know. But I'm Canadian, so I had no choice to learn to skate early. And he just started laughing. And then sackache was really sweet. And then Niedemeyer, who was one of my idols growing up, I gave him a sick apple on his goal. And he was a beauty.

And then Robinson didn't know I could play in the dressing room right when I sat down. Yeah. And he's rooting through his bag. Nicest guy. And obviously a fucking legend. And he's like, do you know about the double sticks tape? And I'm like kind of pacifying the conversation.

And I'm like, yeah? And he's like, listen, tape your stick with this is going to change your game forever. And I'm like, if Larry Robinson's telling me to tape it with this. And I'm like, I don't use black, but you have white double side? He goes, no, no, you're going to use black. And so I tape a bit of my stick with it. And he's like re-engaging later. He's like, I told you, I was right.

Wasn't I? Yeah, yeah. I changed your game. sticky tape and I was like it's just a good story but they were so nice and Lemieux was incredible that was legendary man just it's been incredible to like get a call from the NHL and be like hey will you you know interview Gratz or I've got all these right here about 40 signed Grasci card like literally all in here there's probably 24 five signed ones in there.

I got four grand jerseys. He's such a gentleman. God, he's been nice to me. And oh, anyways, I'm going to go one more story and it's unbelievable. So after the game, I'm in the box watching the actual All-Star game. And I'm like probably four beers in. A little buzzy. And there's no bathroom in the box.

And I opened the door. and Steve Eisenman is there just like this about to knock and I was buzzed up enough you just hugged him I was gonna say she just grabbed him and I was like why the fuck didn't you skate

I didn't say anything before that and he's and I'm like oh yeah come on in man come on in he was with his wife and one of his daughters and we ended up talking forever and he was just an amazing guy and he's like man if I knew it meant that much to you I would have skated

and he's like I did see it I went up to Forsberg who was a legend he was growing up obviously I fucking hated Colorado being a Red Wings fan but it was I went up to him and those crazy blue eyes

and just that beard and he started taking it like seriously the last couple shifts because we were down yeah yeah he's still He's still a weapon, eh? He's in great shape still. It's crazy. Just ridiculous.

Yeah. And I went up and I was just like, hey, man, I'm going to put my ego aside and just say, I just grew up watching you. You're a legend. And he's like, I'm sorry to disappoint. And I'm like, no, no, no, no, no, man. I'm not saying that. It's just these guys were the best in the world.

Yep. Yeah. And this is, I think, why Eisenman didn't skate either because they hadn't played in four, five, eight years. And they're like, they're not the same player. And it's just, it's, I don't know. I get it, though. Yeah.

Same. Same. But it's, but they can't get what it means to us to even see them. You know what I'm saying? Like, I don't care. I don't need anything. Just be it on the same sheet. I just wanted one sauce over to Stevie.

Oh, can you imagine? Oh, God. God. I texted them. I texted them this year. And it's unreal. I got all the Red Wings gear for, um,

I think I was wearing red wings. I was wearing Red Wings glove in our game. Yeah, you did. You had those red gloves in. And so I'm all Red Wings out now. I have all head to toe. And I sent him my new pants and all this, this video. And I'm like, if you want early 40s washed up D-Man,

that'll fight anything that moves and blocks shots on the Red Wings, let me know. Yeah, I'm in. And I'll sign a fucking PTO. It's okay. Yep. And he goes, Just as a legend, he's just like, the Red Wings plane is en route, send your address.

Just a legend, man. Just such a good dude. It's so awesome. That shit means a lot to me, man. I think to play in that charity game was incredible. Obviously, I got a lot of friends, the lost houses there. And from my manager, didn't lose it, but she was booted out for a while. And obviously, Pratt, tell her, these guys.

but yeah to be a part of it and to go skate around with other legends and raise money come on we had a blast we had a blast it was such a good event and and it was put together so quickly and it came it was so unreal uh my uh it's similar to the your bork story we're in the we go out for like the wheel around skate and then we went into the team room and gassing some beers before we went out and Steve correll came up to me and he was like hey I got to ask, is this stuff fun for you guys? Like, do you enjoy this or is it like kind of annoying? And in that moment, I realized Steve thought that I was an NHL guy.

And I was just like, no, it's so cool, man. Like, we love it doing this stuff for you guys. I was like, oh, God. You do, you know. Yeah, yeah. I was like, that was an ego boost. I love that. The best.

Dude, well, I mean, it's like, it's so interesting looking at how elite your career is. especially when you know how important hockey was to you. And like you said, you go off to New York, you get into modeling, you get into acting school. But you had a grind, brother. Like your stretch was insane. I mean, you have those stories of sleeping on the subway until the security guard kicked you off. And, you know, then you get into your, you get a couple of good breaks. And then Friday night lights comes around.

And like I was saying, our mutual friend, Scott said that your tape was the most chills moment. of all time that he's ever seen because you delivered the Texas Forever line. So what was that feeling of relief like for you when you were like, you know, you leave the game of hockey, you decide to dabble into this new world, which is, let's be honest, as competitive as elite level hockey. And after what looks like you're like, Jesus Christ, am I fucking homeless? And then all of a sudden you land this role. What was that feeling?

And were you truly drinking Lone Star during the tape? Is that a true story? 100%. 100%. was. I think it was a tall boy too. Yeah. And obviously Pete Berg, who directed, I've done like six or seven projects with,

um, he, uh, loved it. And he still has the tape. I haven't seen it since I sent it out. But, um, yeah, man,

that journey, again, it goes to like the lack of contingency, the stubbornness. Being that young and not really, you're, there's no time to be like, woe is me because you're still young,

energetic. And you're like, all right, this is part of my fucking journey. And then I was homeless and a guy named Chris Forberg said, he's like, okay, you've actually been in class for six plus months and you've taken it seriously. There's a manager that would be interested in reping you. Do you want a meeting? And I'm like, of course.

Like, fuck me. Let's go. And then 10 minutes into this meeting, she was like, okay, what do you want to do? Like, what if you could be anybody that you look up to? or what kind of career. And I just like, I want to do character-driven character movies that are like worth telling, stories worth telling. I, indie's all day.

Yeah. And that was kind of the rest is history. One person believes in you gives you that opportunity. And then you make the most of that opportunity, you know? And that's kind of been the whole story. And I think even now, man, that's like, I feel. I'm really, really proud of the career and the journey and all this, the ups and downs and what I've done. But it's like, I'm prepping for a role that starts in eight weeks and you're still scared shitless and fuck, it keeps you so honest, man.

And it's like a little $7 million movie, but it's going to be a banger. And I'm like to sign on to that is just like, it's, I got the book right here. It's based off this book, 11 Days in Hell, but it's a true story. But it's, I'm proud, man. I'm proud of it. And the grind doesn't really stop. Yeah. Yeah.

Dude, didn't you say, I think you said it was Jeff Bridges maybe, who told you like every day I still wake up telling me, expecting the call that's like, you know, you're done here. Yeah. Yeah, man. We're shooting only the brave. And it's, Roland's turned into an amazing guy, amazing friend for me. And he helped me. And my father died when I was doing American Prime Abel. and he was almost my glorified neighbor on on uh just down the street in uh Santa Fe and uh no joke man

that guy is two beautiful daughters right now that are pretty young and uh cath his wife and i would show up to my house and he'd be waiting on my house my stoop just to chat yeah that's awesome and uh we just sit there he's sober and uh we would sit there have a couple waters by the fire and just chat about it and what's going on and all that. So he was an amazing influence and still is and Bridges, man. It was me, Bridges and Brolin in between our

trailers one night. And we were just hanging out. And Bridges was like, you know, man, I don't know, man. I just, I don't know if I got it anymore. We got to talk about BetMGM and the unbelievable action they offer

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And just a fucking legend. Really, really sweet man. And obviously just has his camera on set all the time taking these black and beautiful black and whites. And he wants to talk music all day. He sings actually in that show. But great, great guy. Connolly was awesome. James Badge Dale is still a really close friend.

He's a fucking incredible actor. I'm trying to get him to try to work with him every chance I can. So that was a great Joe Kaczynski who directed is a good friend But yeah man that was a great fucking time Yeah I bet It's interesting you know looking back at the Friday Night Lights days You've said a few times that that era is some of the most free You've ever felt working because you didn't give a shit about the ratings and all that

Why was that? I was ignorant to it all I obviously we didn't have these every 10 seconds getting on social fucking media, which was huge to not have. Yeah. Yeah, you're just, Pete said a real great example for the crew and cast to be free and take ownership of your character. And the precedent he sets with improv and lack of rehearsals to keep things alive and natural lighting. So you go to set, no rehearsals, you got three roaming cameras at all times.

you're in the fucking Riggins house, which is like no joke we've had to like cut half a day because they had to smoke it out because of bugs. Yeah. Like it was legit disgusting in there. Yeah. And people were getting sick. And it was like,

it's the true Riggins house. And it's like the freedom to be like, you know, I love a prop. I love an activity when I'm working. And it's like obviously Riggins is drinking 24-7 for the most part. So I would always have either a football in my hand or a beer or pouring a beer. And no one is there to be like, I don't know.

I don't know if you should be doing this or that. We had no policing, no real like 90% of the time. The writers weren't around because it was in Austin and they were in L.A. And so it was just so free in the sense of creativity. Our camera crew had the utmost freedom for the most part. I would do a scene with fucking seven Saracen and be like, hey man, I'm just going to do push-ups in this scene I'm going to do this whole scene doing fucking push-ups

And he's like, uh, okay Yeah, yeah And then I'm doing the fucking scene just doing push-ups When we're talking about hunting or something And it's like every scene it was like improv And that's where 30 or seven and six came from is the hockey lingo. Yeah, I totally did.

I, when the first time I watched that show and you were throwing seven and six round, I was like, I wonder if Taylor played hockey. And that was the first time I looked it up and I was like, yeah, yeah, that makes sense. There you go. Yeah, all the, I mean, obviously Texas Forever was written. The no regrets is me. When I think we're in Mexico and I'm on the bed whining that we haven't gotten drunk or

this is no fun. I've got, I want regrets. to something. That whole little monologue is improv. Well, dude, you let out a few hockey lingoes. Like, you mentioned it earlier. Like, when you were, I think you're talking to Billy and you say Rip Club, which is very much a hockey thing.

Oh, dude. And I was like, yeah, I was like, whoa, what the fuck? He just said Rip Club. This is fantastic. Billy, Derek Phillips is still one of my better friends still, man. He's a beauty of a guy. and we just loved working with each other. I got him in Terminalist, season one.

Yeah, yeah. A little role in that. He's a great character actor, great dude, and we just loved working with each other and push each other. There's a fucking scene, I'll tell you, real quick, about where he's shirtless eating at the island in the house, and it's a big episode because it's Riggins' dad. And I come into the fucking living room. and he's been like dieting and working out a bit and this and that he probably down to like three mountain doos a day uh because he would hammer mountain dews and darts every fucking chance he got and so i walk it this is we're filming this scene and i think someone puts eggs on the table or something he's eating breakfast and i go into this tangent that's unwritten being like billy i can't

You can't eat this food. Your body's disgusting. This is a fucking joke. Go put a shirt on. And he's looking at me, not even as Billy Wiggins anymore. Derek Phillips is looking back at me like, you son of a fucking bitch. How did you? And so we called Cut and he's like, really? Yeah. You're gonna fucking oust me on TV like and I was just like that's the kind of relationship. we had man such a great dude but oh that was an amazing time and you will never have that back you know yeah yeah lightning in a bottle everyone was on killing it with their within their role and the freedom

and the lack of like critics we're being told every other fucking day we're going to another network or this is our last episode or you're always like all right just make the best of it let's just have fun and enjoy it and and i think that comes through Yeah, it's like you said, too, it's the stage in your career, the age you were, the era without so much social media and how amazing that whole process was, that was lightning in a bottle, I can imagine. It's like, and you're right. It's, it sucks to say it's like the specifics that will never happen again. Yes. Unbelievable.

Yeah, and that shit, I wouldn't be sitting here without F&L, you know, so they've asked me to come back, but P knows the answer. Jason Ketoms, who's the showrunner. Yeah, yeah. show running the next one and he pitched a great pitch and I love those guys obviously but it's just not the challenge I'm looking for and it just it just doesn't it feels like we ended on a great note and you'll just never get that magic back again yeah yeah absolutely no I hear that for sure kids you talked about this with Hank a little bit so sorry to ask you again but I just think it's so cool you are a self-proclaimed but I'm here to make it official today a professional photographer

it's pretty awesome what you're able to do. And we, like we said, grew up in Maine. A lot of our buddies are hunters up there. And I was just never interested because I didn't like the end result. But listening to you and reading a bunch of stuff from you, the way you track the animals and you have like five second window to get this shot has me so intrigued. So what about that especially, but just nature in general,

speaks to you so much? Yeah, man. It's changed my life. I mean, I grew up in a trailer park that was surrounding. by mountains. And my mom had three jobs, is two older bros, and so I would be by myself a ton,

and which shapes a lot of you, as you know, you're nine, ten, doing your own laundry, playing road hockey, as many kids as you can find. And I'd literally go door to door and hit the other single wides

and see if they want to come play stick. Yeah. That was my upbringing. We had two frozen ponds, like 100 yards, away, which was incredible. That's where I learned to skate. But nature to me, man, is a savior.

It really does help me clear my head. It's, you know, I say one every 40 times I'm out there in the Madison Valley or wherever backcountry tracking wolves. It's more about, you're going to get an encounter one every 40 times, is what I'm saying. But it's like, it's more about the chase and being in the moment. If you're lucky enough to have a moment with these wolves, the high is more than anything I have in my life. It's a beautiful thing to be.

I've been this far, man. I've been two feet from a wild wolf that's never seen a human being. And it's almost pissed himself, barked at me, and ran up the mountain. Yeah, God, that's so crazy. Then the rest of the packs joined and barked at me while I was trying to get a shot. But it's like, this is a crazy photo. I'm going to show you, but this is a pack. This is wild wolves seven weeks old in the back country.

And I think you can see them there. Oh, my God, dude. Look at his eyes, dude. Yeah, is that real? Yeah, they're all born with blue eyes and deaf and blind. And then they started obviously seen at six, seven weeks. And that was one of the moments of my life, man, that was like, We heard these, we're literally walking around this one area, backcountry, and we heard whimperings.

And we weren't even like, we weren't even on wolves. We had no idea where they were. And they obviously they want a water source, den close to the water source. And so we were around this little creek and we heard this whimpering under this stage. And I was like, whoa, whoa, whoa. And then I called my buddy over. and there's eight pups that were waiting and we just stood back for like less than a minute. And I had my 35 mil, which I never track with because it's always long lens.

And lucky enough, I had that fucking 35. And that was a moment I'll never forget. And their first howls was incredible. But I went and done polar bears up in Churchill, Manitoba. which I highly recommend. There's an amazing guide up there named Drew that's fucking incredible. But wolves, I got to learn, so I get, you know, Montana they say there's three things you shouldn't talk about.

It's wolves, religion, and politics. And obviously wolves are, you know, pretty polarizing here. But I get to work. I'm lucky enough to understudy and work with the world-renowned biologist named Mike Phillips. And he reintroduced the wolves into Yellowstone in 1995. And then I get to work with his right-hand man named Doug Smith, who ran Yellowstone Wolves for 29 years. And so I'll go on Ted Turner's ranch, which is incredible 114,000 acres.

Damn. And he's an incredible conservationist. And Mike Phillips runs this ranch for him, his foundation. And I'll go, there's, it's called the Bear Tric. pack, the pack of wolves on his ranch. And we'll go out there and just sit and he'll have a cigar and he'll just tell me all and everything I need to know about wolves and what's going on and what's happening. And then he'll be like, oh, wait.

And the bear trap pack will just start howling. And you're sitting on this lawn chair creek or feet in the creek and you're just like listening to these howling wolves. And I got 70 years of experience teaching me. Yeah. So it's been incredible being in nature and doing that, man. You guys, I'll tell you, and I mean it, if you guys want to come track, you're more than welcome to come. And you need a few days because it's so hard to figure out where they are.

But if we get, if we can get into them, I promise you we'll get as tight as we can. So down. Yeah, it's the easiest sell of my life. So down. Easyest sell of my life. What's best winter? Yeah, what's that? What's best winter?

So we can see the tracks. Winter's incredible. Obviously, it's easier to track when it's blanket of snow and white. But early, when they have the pups, it's pretty good too because they got to be pretty active to feed them. And wolves can eat up to 20, 21 to 2 pounds in a feed because they got to take it back and feed the pups. But so they're pretty active. And you still have snow on the ground and it's not fucking minus 400. Yeah.

And we said earlier, I'm a bitch. So, okay, so spring it is. Oh, my God. Either would be amazing. Well, dude, it's like your passion for nature and the outdoors and things like this, I feel like translates also to your passion in characters with all the projects you do. And, you know, we named a bunch. But, you know, if you have iconic roles and things like Waco, true detective,

primeval, like you mentioned earlier, which, by the way, is it true? You had a shattered bone in your foot during the film of that? Dude. Studio your new foundation. Use PDF spaces to generate a presentation. Grab your docs, your permits, your moves. AI levels of your pitch gets it in a groove. Choose a template with your timeless cool.

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Yes, you guys did your fucking research. I appreciate that. Banana bread was unreal, by the way. I had real banana bread sombrero and I can't remember my fourth horse. But yeah, man, I was doing, there's a, when I go into that skinning camp. Oh, yeah. So that was, that was a crazy sequence and a lot of rehearsal. And, um, and it's just a stunt gone wrong, man.

And, uh, the guy landed on my foot and we called cut. And it's probably a 30, 40 second action take, which is a lot. And, um, did you know immediately? Yeah. I had a shooting pain up my groin and I looked to, uh, his name's Papa Dashnaw, or legendary stunt coordinator. Uh, his, his son. J.J. Dashnaw has been with me

since Battleship, actually. He was my guy on Lone Survivor, Waco, Battleship. Man, he's going to stunt coordinate this next movie, but he's great dude. And I went up to Papa Dash, and I was like, dude, my foot's broken. Yeah. And he looks at me and he goes white in the face. He goes, Kitch, don't fuck with me.

Yeah. Don't fuck with me like that. And I'm like, it's broken. Yeah. Something's wrong. And then the medic, They call the medic and I finish the sequence. You were an animal.

You were an animal. And he literally takes me into my trailer and he sprays bio freeze on it. And I'm like, no, no, it's broken. I don't know if you heard me. The bone is broken. Yeah. And so I go to Bozeman, come back home, foot specialist. He goes, okay, it's going to heal on its own.

You're in a boot for six weeks. fine. Go back to work, shoot for six weeks, and then I'm going to get the boot off and get the full green light for more stunts and all this stuff. And he takes the x-ray and he's like, what time is it? It's 11 a.m. I need you in surgery by like one. Dude. And I'm like, don't fuck with me. Yeah. Yeah. Seriously. And he's like, I got it the next morning. And he's, he called me and he's like, do you want a pin in it? And that may not take if you're going to be moving around a lot or I cut it out and we do bone wax and I'm like cut it out man yeah and so we cut the bone out right here I'll move up this whole bone from the top of your big toe down is gone it's just gone

it's just fucking gone crazy get it out get it out it's what you got to do sometimes so yeah that was tough man and then I was obviously in a boot for so much of it but that role was kind of my Braveheart. I learned a lot about the native community. I was doing a lot of native sweats, which was incredible. I got, I started this nonprofit. We put a sweat lodge up there with the shaman that taught me a shit ton for prime evil. I went down to the Shoshonee reservation in Wind River and was lucky enough to talk with some elders and really truly kind of embrace that community. And more importantly, they embrace me, which is, Incredible, man. So a lot of that is sunk in. I got crazy stories about that. And it helped me a lot with my dad passed. I was fly fishing up in West Yellowstone and got a call.

And he had 48 hours left. So I booted up to Colonna and had a day and a half with him, really. And he passed on Father's Day. And then I was back on set Tuesday morning. And I don't know if this may be where you got. the story about banana bread, but Pete came up to me and he was like, hey, it's the scene with Bridger at the gate. Yeah.

And he's like, Kitch, you want banana bread? Do you want to walk in with banana bread? Do you want to be on banana bread or no banana bread? And I'm like, I want to ride them in. And so we have Wranglers with all the horses, obviously. And he sends the Wrangler, I think his name's BJ or AJ. really good dude and he was incredible with me

man he would off camera be under the horse pulling me off the horse and so he would take all my weight so 50% of the time me getting off the horse there's a 6 foot 6

6 cowboy under that horse grabbing my boot and letting my boot take he's taking my weight yeah what a fucking lesson I fucking I fucking had a moment on that set and broke down for like 30 minutes and a lot of the guys didn't know what i mean

it just happened on sunday at like three he passed and uh you know uh really really beautiful crew a lot of guys that were older came up to me and told me their their stories about their father and uh pete was great and and um yeah man and this whole thing to go full circle with it just learning a lot about the native community and everything is kind of circular and full circle and has a meaning. So it allowed me to mourn them the way you should, you know. So it was a beautiful experience, if you can call it that. And that show will always hold a heavy piece. Yeah, I bet, I bet. Almost a bit of a blessing to be on that set with that community during that time. Truly. Truly. And, you know, the first AD was amazing. They sent me.

me home after that because I was kind of a mess after that scene. But that when I broke down, I got to my trailer. I broke down around like 2.30, whatever. And I got to my trailer and I looked at my phone. It was my oldest brother, Damon. And he's like, my dad raised cars and was a big, bagpipe player, incredible player. And I saw him twice my last 19 years, the last 19 years. And And he said his name, his race name, basically, we called him Gouy. Yeah. Yeah. So my whole upbringing, it wasn't dad, it was Gouy.

Yeah. And so he's like, Gouy got cremated. And the exact time he got cremated is when I fucking went down on set. Holy shit. So there's all these crazy parallels. Yeah. But yeah, it was an incredible time, man. That one was a heavy one.

And again, I'm playing a guy mourning the loss of my fans. family. Yeah, seriously. So, yeah, it was, I mean, life imitating art and vice versa. Yeah. It's amazing. Well, I mean, I do want to get into, you've got the amazing character of Ben Edwards coming back. Yeah, yeah.

Dude, Terminalist is a banger of a show. And we're getting the prequel story, Dark Wolf. You're getting to revisit that character. Something you said that I loved is you really like taking roles that scare the shit out of you. And that's such a powerful quote and message. And what is it about this character that you wanted to revisit? I think it stands from alone, right? I don't think anyone will top, you know, if you're playing a SEAL to be able to play Mike Murphy.

And I'm super close with the Murphy family. Dan Marine, Johnny, the extended family. They were at the premiere in New York, which was fucking awesome. it's really the community you know even in we're shooting this in huntsville this next movie and marcus lettrell lives

you know an hour away not even so Marcus is like a brother to me man he's he's the lone survivor and he's um so I'll be on his ranch a shit ton while we're shooting this but anytime you know you can play and obviously Edwards is just so different

and there's so much more stories to tell and I think with Ben when they pitch me to bring them back obviously it came out of fucking nowhere right like i signed a one season deal we know what happens at the end of season one and so when they called me it was pratt and digilio the showrunner head writer and they're like what do you want to do like are you interested like you got carte blanche right it's not in the books and what kind of story do you want to tell with ben and it was really about shining the light in the dark and the repercussion to service.

And I take a lot of pride in that. And I think that's where we go with Ben. You start to see the cracks. And you start to see like how myopic this motherfucker really gets when he's in the fight. And everybody, and I mean everybody, is falling at the wayside of him. And he's still just moving forward. And I love that. And I love playing that part of him.

It's not a, he's not a, he's not. Captain America kind of seal. He's very fucking flawed. He's kind of a mess. And he knows it. But I think he's still incredibly loyal and is a brother. And that's what's paramount to him. And that's kind of his North Star for the most part.

And he makes mistakes. And you're going to see it. And I think the way he fights and how, fuck, there's some beautiful scenes in there. As much as this action is incredible. in it. We have some beautiful scenes that I think that community will hopefully see eye to eye with and relate to, really.

Yeah, that's the fucking best, man. I can't wait. That's coming out the 27th, I think. Yeah, 27th, yeah. The first three come out and then it's one, one, one, one. But we're all so proud of it. And, you know, you got to tip the hat to everybody involved, really, of just like, obviously when you start a scene.

There's growing pains. And we learn so much from season one. So we were lucky enough to kind of hit the ground running in our season. And I know Pratt's doing True Believer now. And I've seen a shit ton of that. And that looks fucking insane. The scope of True Believer, I will say, is out of control. Yeah.

It's crazy. That's awesome. And we're like more we go into like the spy espionage of it. We're in Budapest, Switzerland, Germany. uh in the show and i love that part of it like that's a cool part of it too like i grew up loving born yeah yes dude fuck yeah so when you get to be that guy and just regular clothing getting in a fucking crazy shootout in this tunnel in this epic city it's it's you know no acting required it's so fun so sad it's electric uh well kids we're gonna play a quick game with you before we

get you out of here but just before we do that i wanted to give you the chance to um shout out of what you just mentioned, which is How is Rich. Yeah, thank you, man. Which is so cool, man. It's, they're supporting veterans, people with substance use challenges, other trauma. I don't know if everyone certainly our listeners know what you went through with your sister. So if you're comfortable, just kind of given the backstory on that. And then, you know, talk about how easy it's been putting this together with taxes and everything.

Oh, my God. I was literally on a call at 1.30 with our director, Megan, who's amazing. But, yeah, Howler's Ridge. It's dead center between Livingston and Bozeman, 7,000 feet up on this ridge. Obviously, we know I love wolves, so I just put them together. And wolves are very communal, and hopefully this is as well. But yeah, with my sister, yeah, not to go crazy deep, but she used for seven years and maybe a little more preteen. And she got clean at 1920.

and I took a lot of time off and kind of had her under my wing for two years. She relapsed around six, seven times, Narcan twice in three days. And, you know, she's, I don't, she shouldn't be around, man, but she is and she's sober 10 years almost now. Hell yeah. And her story is a fucking movie. Yeah. And so obviously the addiction part of that is really, really close to me.

She's a nurse now and is incredible and kind of has that adventure that I have in me. And so she's always buzzing around. She did a trip around the world by herself when she got clean. So she's just an amazing message to not just addiction, but to women that have come through trauma as well. So she's an incredible example. And then, of course, the veteran community, which a lot of my buddies, Marcus will tell you, he's clean pain killers are a big thing

fentanyl patches are a big thing with the vet community my sis was fentanyl pills and everything else to be honest but her drug of choice was fentanyl but it was it just feels like an organic thing

and then to go back to the nature part of it I think when you're using you know I called Marcus up one day when I didn't know where to go or take my sis and he's got a beautiful little ranch and he's just, these guys, man, it's like

you ask for literally anything. It's not even a question. And he's just like, bring her here. There's no fentany. There's no drugs on this ranch, man. Bring her here. Well, at least we know we'll keep her sober

and clean for 10 days and we'll keep her busy. And he was amazing. And so it's like when you're using, I think the first thing, obviously, is to understand what your problem is. But also,

So to take yourself out of that environment that you've created, right? So that's what this kind of represents, an environment of change and a safe place to kind of engage within yourself and whatever you're dealing with. And my family has never been the same after, you know, she came out with a lot of stuff. And so it's going to affect the families, too, hopefully in a positive way and help guys, women get up back on track. that's the plan man and it's called howlers ridge you can go to howlers ridge org and donate or you can volunteer you can help make a difference and that's the goal next summer eh we're trying yeah next summer we're we got two full-time vets up there right now and more or actually we had a homeless vet up there for a while and then it's a hundred percent veteran

bill right now it won't be when it's done just because it's tough yeah yeah um to keep it at that level. Yeah. And obviously, if I'm slinging a fucking hammer up there, I'm making shit worse. Yeah. Yeah. And way more unsafe. Yeah.

That's so good. Which I try and do. I'll do the grunt work for sure. But yeah, thanks for bringing that out, man. Of course, man. It's such a beautiful thing. Yeah. Appreciate it.

And you got the sweat lodge, eh? Didn't you've got the sweat lodge? Yeah. We just finished the sweat lodge like six weeks ago. And then it's, it's based. It's made out of Willows, and obviously the shaman and his wife built it with me. And it's incredible. I'm not whining here, but it's a lot of work.

And so obviously when you finish the sweat lodge, he's like, all right, let's do a sweat. And I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa. You're like, I got nothing to give here, pal. I'm like fucking gassed out. He's like, all right, let's get in here for two hours. And it was a beautiful experience. And he's an amazing guy. And he's been 19 plus years, this guy has been working with veterans in and around Montana all over.

And he's worked a lot with women and trauma, too. So it's a great fit. He's a great guy. And, you know, it's just a natural way to kind of break that vice. It really is a beautiful experience. And it all depends on how open you are, right? definitely if you're not open to shit it doesn't matter your religion anything social none of that matters when you're in that lodge so um it's a beautiful thing if you allow it to be

yeah dude that that sweat must have been like fighting back-to-back nights at the whack you're kidding me dude talk about being broken that's what we love it oh beautiful stuff well it's amazing you're doing that man and uh to wrap you up like cp said we're gonna we're going to finish you off here with a game that we play with everyone. It's called pass shoot score. Basically, it's a ranking system. We're going to give you three things. You've got to rank them either pass, shoot, or score goes down the line. Passing's great, but shooting's better. Scoring is the ultimate goal. So scoring is going to be your favorite. These might be the hardest ones we've ever made. So, yeah, yeah. These are going to, again, talk about being broken. These are

going to break you. Yeah. Okay, great. Your first category is movies. So your pass shoot score is airplane Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Oh my God This is impossible You've done your fucking research And slap shot Oh my God man

This is I mean Newman Is a massive influence And obviously Is charitable work speaks for itself Airplane is where our humor comes from I would do sleepovers

With this guy named Keith Peterson who was a great player and then Slapshot Raise Me Yeah Pass airplane I know When he's going through the fucking terminal

Dude And people are asking for charitable shit And he's rolling off their back Yeah It's fucking unbelievable I guess I'll pass Airplane Shoot damn

I'll shoot fuck Butch Cassidy I'll shoot Butch Wow And then I'll say score slap shot

Hey it was influential for us boys Yeah I sure it Newman's in both So Yeah right I check both boxes there So that's okay

Yeah I'm sticking with that Yeah I think that's good That's well done Me too Me too Okay your next category Is your Christmas decorations Oh my God man

Your 30 foot Santa Your Grinch's or your gingerbread man. Also, Kitch, I need to know, are these fucking inflatables? Yes. You white trash motherfucker. I'm so trash, man.

So trash. I get kids leaving cookies on my doorstep, man, in Christmas. That is, dude, we're a huge Christmas guys, so this fires me. We also go full Griswold. Like, it is a joke. It's a joke. I'm going to text you.

I'm going to text you after this, the latest and greatest too. Oh, wow. We've got a new edition. I fucking love it. It's a 25 foot reindeer. Oh, my God. I'm going to score with Santa. 30 foot, Santa, come on.

Has to. By the way, that's not cheap. No. Like, I literally, literally called my business manager and was like, hey, I'm going to this you're going to see this come up on the fucking amex here we just move some stuff around make this work yeah uh okay definitely score with santa shoot grinch past gingerbread i think again i like that's right i like it i like it he's on a fucking roll yeah god this is and what i'm fired up now is this like come Christmas season we're all going to be chatting and yeah correct comparing all of

our decorations 100% you got to show me what you guys are made up oh dude you'll love it oh yeah no doubt about it dude like you're going to see me scale in the chimney up in made yeah great um all right your next category which we've teased a little bit through here is your photos oh god pass shoot score the wolf looking down the barrel that's your phone screen yep the eagle in the snowstorm at yellow Oh, beautiful. And the polar bear in Alaska. Polar Bear Churchill, Manitoba. Oh, that was Manitoba.

That was Manhattan. Okay. By the way, they have a curfew there, and there's a siren that goes off at 10p, meaning there's nobody doing the perimeter checks. Yeah. And polar bears will roam through that town. It's no joke. Was that the scariest moment of your fucking life, dude?

That was like, they say, what is it? Black won't attend. Brown lay down, white, say good night. Yeah, say good night. That's what I'm saying. Like, that must have been the scariest moment of your life. When I first saw my first polar bear, it was, I'll never forget it. Yeah.

Never forget it. Just in awe of these fucking animals. Incredible. Oh, my God. We called that white wolf. That was a female alpha. And we had watched her for probably 30 hours. So there's a little bit of more emotional attachment there.

That's epic. And we were, we were fucking crab walking up this finger of these mountains. And you howl, right? And hopefully they howl back. And that's how you can learn a location. And I was howling and we were glassing that mountain range. And she howled back. And she was way up the mountain, almost at the top of these fingers.

and she was howling and there's other wolves around and I had my camera on this rock and I was with one of my best mates and he was like oh she disappeared and I pulled focus to the top of this hill where if she disappeared and was coming to be curious of what was going on I had focus where she was going to pop up and of course she did and she came up to 40 yards she was away from Wow, dude. And she gave me five seconds and then walked away back into the drainage. So that is score for me. Yep.

And we called her ghost. Yeah, perfect. Yeah. Yep. And then Eagle and a snowstorm was backcountry yellowstone. And that was eight hours. I was waiting on a carcass in my van, in my adventure band with my buddy who's here actually now, Kevin.

We were playing Monopoly deal in the van. Sick. Sitting the best. So sick. We'll fucking crush anybody in Monopoly. Oh, wow. Okay. All right.

We'll do it in studio one day and we'll fucking play some Monop. I take that game way too serious. It's so personal when you deal break me. Yes, it is. I take it so personal. You might as well kill my family, dude. I go fucking hard with that shit. It's like you play the deal break and then push in the VCR video cassette and there's my family.

Yeah. And just pillaged in a corner and an attic. Yeah. That's what it is. Yeah. Correct. I really do. It's, I get mean. Yeah.

And you have to. You have to win, to be honest. You have to win. And then I don't know if it was you or me that saw this black wolf come down, this drainage. But we get out of the van. And everybody has laughed. There's a blizzard now. Everybody has left.

There's like maybe one other car, this guy out of Colorado and with his girlfriend. And Black Wolf comes, he's feeding on the carcass. And we're like, oh my God, this is incredible, man. We're like 30 yards from this beautiful wolf eating on this elk that had slipped and broke his legs the night before. and fucking we look down down uh i don't know down this beat up road 19 wolves oh my god come crossing this road and i'm like grab cab and i'm like fucking grab that so he's got footage of his phone i had my long lens on my on the other guy's hood and that black wolf i thought was part of the pack.

And so that Black Wolf started like really low howls. No Bueno. Yeah, yeah. So he leaves and the 19 take over the carcass. The alpha pitch comes over and it's very tough to understand who the alpha is. You need time with a pack to understand. Yeah, yeah. And my guess,

it was this alpha because the way they greeted and then that alpha didn't even look at that carcass it went I have all this on video by the way goes like 10 feet off the carcass dialed into that black

wolf and he or she does they start communicating and the wolves are eating and he calls them off the carcass and they go kill the black wolf Holy shit.

Yeah, man. So I heard the pack get after this black wolf behind this big hill that went into the mountain. And so we're running down this road to try and go capture it. But they're way, way too far gone. But anyways, there's that eagle above the carcass in the snowstorm. And I was like, fuck, I can't go get that shot. I can't witness that. So I came back and I was just, it was incredible, a great moment.

So I'll say, damn, the polar bear is the other one. That is a wild story for that ego shot, though. You would never guess that all that went down before that eagle shot. That's another fucked up story with that polar bear, man. I was with that guide and one of my best mates, Mark LaBelle, who's in Dirty Honey, the band. And we went up there and the polar bear, we were trying to get this silhouette of the polar bear. We were really far away. And so we part strategically thinking the polar bear is going to get behind the sun.

And fucking lo and behold, man, this polar bear took our tracks of the van and was coming straight towards the van. And I asked Drew our biologist and our guide, I'm like, can I get out of the van? and he's like, don't leave the van within a meter. And so I went under the bumper in the front and hunkered in with the long lens and that polar bear was coming straight at me. And I got the shot, man. I got the fucking shot.

And lucky, a little bit of luck for sure. So that was an incredible encounter. I'll say polar bear shoot. No, I'm going to say eagle shoot. Pull a bear pass. Insane story. Damn. Yeah.

All three. All three. But they're so beautiful, dude. You're doing, like, I mean, I know it's your passion anyway, but you are doing such a good job. Oh, it's fantastic. Thanks, man. Yeah. Thanks, dude.

Yeah. I'm going to walk you into this bedroom real quick. Yeah, do it. Kev's staying in there, so God knows what's going to happen. But this is another story that's, I don't know if you can see this. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Holy shit. Yeah, that was.

So the most famous grizzly in the world died last year. Grizzly 319 of the Teton, queen of the Teton's. She had a lot of cubs, and one of her cubs is grizzly 610. And that's Grizzly 610 daughter. Wow. So that's the granddaughter of the most famous grizzly that ever lay. Insane. Well, dude, I mean, here's the thing.

Like, I just moved into a new place and I need a ton of wall art. Yeah. I'm telling you, Kit's photos. going to be on my own. I'm going to auction these photos off for the charity. Oh, there you go. Boom. Perfect. Done. So give me $50,000 and I'll send you a polar bear photo. Perfect. Done. Go into a good cost. It's going to a good cause. Now you won't talk about all these scripts and shit you got going. There you go. Like I got to shut my mouth. I mean, I feel like I do that. It'll be a little bit less than the 30 foot Santa. So that'll be fine.

Yeah, totally. And I really won't. blame you if you go for the 30-footer. Yeah, yeah. That's a tough choice. Okay, Kit, here's your last category and you've mentioned all these guys already, so I know this one's going to be hard for you. This category is Legends in their field. Pass shoot score.

Steve Eiserman, Stevie Wonder. Score. Paul Newman. Oh, my God. I thought you were going to hockey players. No, no, no. Legends in their specific field. No, this is about to get a lot worse for you, too. Steve Eiserman, Paul Newman, Mike Phillips. this is fucking wrong. Hey, maybe we can let him go Hattie if he wants.

Yeah, the triple score. We do allow one hat trick. So if you need to score all three, we get it. If I have a mentor, it's Phillips. Right. He's done so much for conservation. And he's got it, you can look him off on Spotify. He's got an incredible, he talks about not just wolves,

but Gris in Alaska and he's been doing it since the early 80s I was just on the Flying D Ranch fishing with them and just an amazing guy he's taught me so much about wolves and what's going on but Newman has had such a fucking huge effect on me

I mean Stevie White I can't he's the one-all be-all man I was fucking six swearing number 19. Was it your brother? I think you said. Like, how come you guys were Wings fans?

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, my bro. And he's Cranbrook, B.C., which is not far from Ketown. That's cool. Dude, I got to tell you, I obviously, like Chris said, we grew up in Maine,

but I was a Wings fan too because of Lidstrom. So, like, I was all in on these teams you're talking about. So nasty. It was fucking the best. I mean, Listram, he's, I know Bobby Orr,

it wasn't my time, obviously, but he's got to be. How many Norse's Does Lidsstrom have seven? I think so. I think Bobby has eight. Bobby won eight in a row. And I,

Yeah. Get out of here. Yeah. Eight in a row. Bobby is eight in a row. Yeah. And dude, I forget who the guy is,

but one of the great stories is Bobby was rookie year. He came in second in Norris voting. And the guy who won goes, I'm glad I won this now because that kid's going to win the next 10. And then Bobby won the next eight. And then retired. Yeah. Oh my God.

Fucking crazy. Okay. Okay. So Littstrom, seven? I think Litschum has six or seven. I think it's like one. Yeah, seven. I was like he has won less, I think.

So I'll tell you a great hockey story to close it out. My best name, I was doing Friday Night Lights and my best friend, Clarkie, the aforementioned guy that murdered everyone in the whack after I got smashed. He calls me and he was fighting for Laredo. Oh, yeah. Dude, these are a fucking crazy pulse of these teams, by the way. Laredo Bucks. And I only know this because he was on there. And I think he had 23 fights in 40-something games.

Insane. And he calls me and he's like, you're not going to fucking believe this. I have a main camp tryout with the Red Wings. And I'm like, you're right. Yeah, I don't believe this at all. I don't believe it. I don't believe it. And he just got an agent.

And of course he did. He wasn't lying. And so he's in Joe Lewis Arena. Oh my God. And those F&L days, you had to say, hey, I want two days off. I'm going here for the weekend. Let me go. You need them to be like, yeah, you're allowed to go.

Write you up. Literally write it up. I didn't tell anyone. I just fucking went. And he was telling me these stories It's going to go back to Lidstrom So he goes and fights Downey And knocks him out

You can look all Downey will tell you this story He took Clarkie under his wing Actually after This is the NHL This is the type of guys They're in the show right You get knocked out

And you take the guy That knocked you out under your wing Like who does that in any other sport No nothing And so the AHL tough guy, he's got to fight the AHL tough guy now. So he knocks him out. And he's calling me and he's like, I don't know what's happening, but I'm lucky. I'm the luckiest fucking guy on the planet.

Like, I had no right in knocking Downey out. I had no right in knocking this guy out. And he had great flow, the HL guy. and like literally straight hair down his back. I don't know his name, but anyway, now Clark's the guy. Yep. He's the guy. Yeah, yeah.

And he was telling me he was playing with Datsuk, Hasick, Lidstrom, Holmstrom. Yeah. And I think they won the fucking cup that year. He was 08 or 09. Yeah, that must have been 08. Beat the Gcross. There's 08. They beat Cid.

And so he was so nervous. his first lap he bales in the corner and takes out Babcock Oh my fucking God dude Takes him out And they laugh it off

And all this kind of shit And he's so now he's Like everyone's doing a little bit of a bag skate At the end of the thing And he's nervous still like nerves are like Just eating him up He's in a Red Wings practice Fucking Jersey

He doesn't even understand what's happening throws up in his glove Does he put it on? Rows up in his glove trainer comes over, waves him to the bench and he goes, this is your last set. Yeah.

Gives him a new set of mitts. Doesn't throw up again. But he fights, I don't know if it was the Downey fight or the HL guy, but Lidstrom comes to the box. and gives him his gear, and he goes out of fucking kid. That's fucking awesome.

Oh, my God. I mean, I got chill. Me too, dude. I can't believe that. Same, holy fuck, man. Isn't that rad, man? That's the coolest thing of all the guys to come over, too. Coolest thing we were right.

Mr. Perfect. Holy shit. Yeah, Mr. Perfect, man. He really was. Oh, that is unreal. And then I got to see Eisenman in the, in the, I totally embarrassed myself, but shamelessly was, yelling his name in the in the tunnel.

But yeah. When you were there for the camp, when he just bailed on the F&L set. Bailed. God. Fucking all time, dude. Absolutely epic. Unbelievable.

Dude, the last thing we're going to do, and then truly, we're done, I promise. All good, man. I'm having a blast. We do this thing called Career Haddy with all the boys, and we asked them to pick their three favorite goals of their career, and I know that you could do that. but we're going to take it to the current career and do three favorite roles.

So what are your three favorite characters? Yeah, it doesn't need to be ranked, but just three favorite characters you've played. Shit. I'm going on all these long diatribs. But that's the best. Like, that's,

now we know why you're making these picks. Yeah. Kevin Carter was massive because that got me. I went and understudied Jeff Lipski in L.A., who's still an amazing photographer and learned to shoot on film. and that really was amazing role for me just because I've never I just learned so much on the camera

and that's stuck with me to literally today I'd say yeah that's so sad I'm unbelievable I'd say Kev is in there that was a wild wild shoot man it was in South Africa we was shooting in like the townships

there's like true true violence and I learned a lot which is a beauty of my job. So it was about the first re-election where Mandalay got elected and these guys are war photographers. Great book called The Bang Bang Club and movie. But the book is incredible.

Lone Survivor, obviously with the SEAL community and Marcus and Ray Mendoza and all these guys that are in my life now, had no idea about a lot of just everything that they go through and the type of guys they are. And then, fuck,

I learned so much on normal heart. Oh, great one. Yeah, I was actually, I'm not going to throw normal heart in there because Waco was where, six months Prap Man,

and Waco was the turn for me as an actor, like to, learn my process and what makes me go and and that was the scary scary role and i was judging koresh for the first three months of the six so i hadn't it was like a big border of like i didn't have a full engagement and i was really judging him which was it's quite easy to do and i talked to i'd call one of the dowdows who directed it at like two in the morning and i'm like trying to ask all these questions and then a month before the shoot I called my manager and I tried to get off.

I tried to fucking get off. Yeah. I was like, hey, I know there's going to be a repercussion, but if you can get me off this shoot, I can't do this anymore. I don't want to do it. It's too much. It's too much pressure. I don't know what's going to happen.

I'm out. And she's like, I'll make some calls tomorrow. Yeah. But you got to give me. me some time here and you've got to take some time and obviously I'm very grateful. This is a. Yeah, yeah. No, I can tell.

Yeah, this is from Dan Murphy for Lone Survivor, which is cool. And then that was a real article from Waco. But as an actor, that really, really just created a whole world for me to dive into and understand myself through the process and blah, blah, blah. but it was so I'll say Lone Waco and Kev Carter That fires me up to here

Because I I fucking loved Waco And I for your career That that trailer Was the first time where I was like Holy fucking shit this guy is completely transformed Like the trailer was spooky Yeah And I was like damn Taylor looks insane

Dude you're your You're fucking singing lesson story For that It killed me too Dude. Amidst that role, like that story. Talk about like an ego, like, humbling moment, man. Dude, you're trying to sign the piano.

Yeah. Next to like Celine Dion, Ariana Grande. Oh, that was so funny. Oh, my God. I forgot about that. Man, what a time. Yeah. I mean, literally I have these.

crazy, crazy monologues in this next one. And I'm still panicking, but I literally go back to Waco being like, fuck, if you can do those. Yeah, for sure. Just monologues and learn the Bible inside out and five, seven minute monologues, then I can do this. So it helps. But yeah, still scared shitless with this one. Yeah. No.

Good. Good. Meas you care, dude. Yeah, totally. You know? Well, buddy, we could fucking talk to you for 10 hours here. Truly, man. But we can't thank you enough for coming on.

This has been a blast before we let you jump off. Is there anything you want to plug or shout out? No, man, I just want to say thanks for taking the time with Howler's Ridge, and I really appreciate you guys doing research. You know, I'll do, you know, massive journalists that don't do half the research you guys do. So I appreciate it, truly, man. These can be a little grueling at times. Yeah. And this is an actor whining about press.

But yeah, I really do appreciate it. So thanks. And I'm all yours next time. Let's go again. Fuck it. Dude. Well, we're tracking wolves. Let's track some wolves.

Yeah, 100%. Bring it on, man. Bring it on, truly. Fuck the spring. Let's do it in the world. Come on, Dan. Let's go. I want to be in the shit.

Yeah, exactly. Me too. Oh, well, dude, thank you so much, brother. This was a fucking blast. Wow. That was unbelievable. Taylor Kitch is unbelievable. I would do that with him.

every day of the week if he wanted. I can't wait to go to Montana and track wolves. Same. Unreal, legendary guy, fantastic episode. That's going to do it for us today. We will see you on Thursday when we get into the weeds on Youngblood

with our good friend, Billy Langdon. Wow. Fantastic stuff. We can't wait to see you then until we do. Texas Forever and Skate Hard. Martha listens to her favorite band all the time. In the car, gym,

even sleeping. So when they finally went on tour, Martha bundled her flight and hotel on Expedia to see them live. She saved so much she got her seat close enough to actually see and hear them. Sort of. You were made to scream from the front row. We were made

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