Brooks Laich Reveals He Wants Children in Wake of Julianne Hough Breakup

Former NHL star Brooks Laich is sequestered on his Idaho property following a split with Julianne Hough. His next relationship is unknown, but Laich has made one thing clear. He wants children, and he wants the world to be a better place for them in the wake of George Floyd's murder.

Laich explained this point during an episode of his podcast, How Men Think. He, Gavin DeGraw and guest Scott Evans spoke about racism in America, which prompted his revelation. "I'm on a journey to really learn more. Like, truthfully. It's important to me. I hope to be a father one day. And I hope to have the world be a better place for them, for kids, one day." Laich said during the discussion.

This quote isn't the first time that Laich has expressed his goal to have children. He spoke about fatherhood in October 2019. At the time, however, Laich explained that his athletic career in the NHL was a bigger priority. He was dedicating all of his time to excelling for the LA Kings or the other teams he joined throughout his career.

"I didn't think I could do that in my 20s while I was devoting all this time to hockey, which is what — full transparency, selfishly I fully wanted to do," Laich said on How Men Think. "I needed to do that for myself. So now that I'm 36, I feel I do have the space in my life. I'm now not an athlete, I'm not playing hockey. So what does life look like now? There's still a figuring-out process of a new identity for myself. Also with my wife, our relationship — it's a new identity for our relationship as well."

Laich and Hough are no longer a couple, which creates questions about his future and hopes of fatherhood. The couple did take precautionary measures during their relationship by freezing Hough's eggs. They just never tried to have a baby. Months later, the couple announced their split. They quarantined in separate locations during the COVID-19 pandemic and realized that they needed to be a couple no longer.

"We have lovingly and carefully taken the time we have needed to arrive at our decision to separate," Laich and Hough told PEOPLE. "We share an abundance of love and respect for one another and will continue to lead with our hearts from that place. We kindly request your compassion and respect for our privacy moving forward."