Brooks Laich Gets Real About Marriage & Divorce Amid Reported Rough Patch With Julianne Hough

Man, we sure hope Brooks Laich isn’t trying to drop a hint about the future of his marriage with Julianne Hough…

As you might be aware, the professional hockey player co-hosts a podcast called How Men Think with musical artist Gavin DeGraw where they tackle various issues from the male perspective as the show’s name suggests. On Monday’s episode, the pair invited popular divorce attorney Laura Wasser to share her expertise with them and the timing certainly raised eyebrows amid reports of a rough patch between Hough and Laich.

For the taped conversation, the trio explored the reasons why couples may choose to divorce. Laich was particularly candid while explaining how the “need to continually evolve” as individuals can sometimes drive a wedge between partners:

“You’re going to change, I’m going to change in the course of my life, my wife is going to change in the course of her life. But also, I think people over time can develop some sort of indifference where once there was an attraction. They can just develop an indifference, and it’s not staying connected enough to continue to learn and grow and accept your changes, accept their changes, and also challenge each other.”

Hmm. Could those “changes” he’s referring to have anything to do with Julianne coming out to her husband about her bisexuality? Or, the frustration of not feeling “fully expressed” in his own sexuality which he mentioned on the show just a few weeks ago?

The 36-year-old former NHL star continued:

“There are so many resources out there — seminars, books, all kinds of things. There’s areas in your relationship you can undoubtedly grow, and maybe there’s just an indifference in people where they don’t want to put in the energy to do it, or they don’t think they can.”

Laich also said most couples don’t communicate as much as they should:

“I don’t think a lot of people in their marriage really, really truthfully communicate all the needs and desires and cravings and yearnings they have for themselves, for their partner, all of it. I think they lack a little bit of courage there, to share those things, that could really actually keep people together and light their marriage on fire.”

Well, here’s a theory: if Brooks and Julianne stopped posting cryptic messages that are seemingly about each other, maybe they could just address those issues head-on!

Julianne Hough Brooks Laich Sex Therapist — Will they or won’t they work things out? / (c) Julianne Hough/Instagram

Brooks also took a moment to pay his compliments to Wasser for indulging in their discussion:

“Listening to you talk, I really respect and admire your approach to this topic. You aren’t in it just to make money and get people on their way — you actually care about all parties involved, you look at all scenarios and you actually care about people’s happiness. So I want to commend you for all of that and how you handle yourself personally, professionally.”

However, despite his own troubles at home, he also joked that he doesn’t have plans to be a guest on Wasser’s Divorce Sucks podcast for obvious reasons:

“I’m really happy for you, but I hope I’m never on your podcast.”

This all comes after the Dancing With the Stars alum and her husband were spotted on a cozy brunch date together, giving us hope they might not be headed for Splitsville after all. Hough did not have her wedding ring on during their outing, though.

Recently, Derek Hough also shared a positive update about the pair during an appearance on People NOW. The professional dancer says Laich has been tending to his sister who recently fell ill: