Ask Burnsie: Which Bolts are most fun to interview?

TampaBayLightning.com beat writer Bryan Burns will answer readers' most intriguing questions in a regular mailbag feature. Be sure to tweet questions to @bburnsnhl and include the hashtag #AskBurnsie to have your question answered in a future mailbag. If your question wasn't answered today, resubmit it in the future and we'll get it in for another edition. Have fun with your questions too; the more off-beat the query the better.

Which current/former players are the most fun to interview? (via @Saima\1226)
There really isn't a bad guy in the Lightning locker room to interview. They're all accommodating and patient. A few don't speak English as their primary language, which makes an interview more difficult, but for expected, linguistic reasons.
As far as the most fun players to interview:
Steven Stamkos is an absolute pro when it comes to handling the media. During last season's year-long contract saga, he never shied away from questions. His answers were diplomatic, but he was also smart enough not to drag the behind-the-scenes out into the public. And he was asked about it a lot. Understand too, as the team's captain, Stamkos is the main player the media goes to following morning skate and the first guy they want to talk to after a game, win or lose. I'm sure it had to wear on 91 to always be front and center with the contract questions and then later the injury questions, but, if it did, he never showed it publicly.
Stamkos handles the media responsibilities that go with the captaincy as well as he handles the on-ice and locker room responsibilities with the role.
Now, who do I turn to if I need a good quote or really want an in-depth explanation?
Two guys come immediately to mind: Brian Boyle and Anton Stralman
Boyle is a treasure for the Lightning media contingent. You can tell with every question, he takes the time to listen to it, formulate a thought that's not an overused cliché and expand on his answer well beyond what you would expect from a professional athlete. He's willing to talk about past experiences in his career and share great stories from his 10 years in the league. And his answers are always insightful. Just the rare guy that knows how to talk about the game and isn't bashful about sharing his knowledge. He'd probably make a good commentator if he wanted to go that route.
Another interesting thing about interviewing Boyle is he speaks softly most of the time. He has a voice that projects, but he doesn't use it when he's being interviewed at his stall. You have to get your recorder right up next to him or risk missing another gem. With other guys around the room talking and music blaring in the background, sometimes it can be a bit difficult to hear him. And you definitely want to hear him.
As for Stralman, he has to be one of the most patient guys I've ever met. I'm guessing having four kids will do that. But, like Boyle, he's another player who I've always felt I learn a little more about the game each time I interview him. His wisdom has been invaluable during my three seasons covering the team. And he always has a smile on his face when you talk to him. Every player has times you can tell would rather be somewhere else than answering questions. That's understandable. I'm sure I would react the same way with a bunch of microphones inches from my face on a daily base, answering questions that can be, quite frankly, repetitive at times (and I'm as guilty as any for asking repetitive questions; it happens over an 82-game regular season).
But I never get the impression it bothers Stralman. He seems genuinely agreeable to helping out whenever asked. And that makes my job a lot easier.
And more fun.
What are some of the best pranks you've seen from this current roster of Bolts players? (via @TheRevTy)
I haven't witnessed any personally that come to mind, but Tyler Johnson did tell me about one during his rookie year that I thought was pretty funny.
It was during a road trip, and he and Ondrej Palat were sharing a room because rookies share rooms on the road. Somehow, Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis had gotten a copy of their room key, and hid in their room along with a couple other players.
When Johnson and Palat returned, Stamkos busted out of his hiding spot, scaring the two. Five minutes later, St. Louis came out from underneath the bed and startled the guys again. One by one, every five minutes, a new player would emerge, freaking Johnson and Palat out one by one while the rest of the group howled.
"This went on for about 30 minutes," Johnson recalled. "They got us pretty good."
Do you believe teams in warm climate areas like the #Bolts should play in outdoor games to expand the sport? (via @CJ\Lawlor95)
I don't know that it should necessarily happen to grow the sport (that will happen organically), but I think every team in the NHL should eventually get an outdoor game, and I know the Lightning would like to be involved. I think it would be punique to see an ice rink in the middle of Raymond James Stadium. Having said that, there are some obvious, practical concerns with playing an outdoor game in Florida. Namely, how can we keep the ice, well, ice?
We do get cold spells in Tampa, but if the game is played during the day, temperatures will more than likely be at least 70 degrees or higher. A night game could help cool things off but not much. It would be great to play the game when a winter cold front passes through and temperatures dip down into the 40s or 30s event. But the game has to be scheduled well in advance; predicting the temperature is impossible. I think, however, once the ice issue is resolved, the Lightning will be a strong candidate to host an outdoor game.
Maybe one day someone can ask Heds how it all started? (via @AllaTRS)

So, this question is in reference to the pregame ritual Victor Hedman does with Lightning assistant equipment manager Rob Kennedy (known by Bubba to staff and players) where Kennedy, standing in the bench area, puts his hands on top of the boards and splays his fingers out while Hedman takes his stick blade and goes in between each finger with the stick, cycling through all 10 digits a couple of times before shoulder bumping Kennedy and heading back out on the ice. It's a lot like a drunk game a friend of mine in college played but with a knife and an eventual trip to the ER. A lot of people were asking about the routine, especially after the Calgary game when the NHL shot video of the unique ritual and tweeted it out. Two days later in Vancouver, every reporter in the room wanted to talk to Hedman about it. I'll let him explain.
Reporter:Have you ever hit his finger before?
Hedman: I probably do it every time, yeah. But, it's not that hard. I'm pretty good at it right now. We've been practicing for a long time.
Reporter: Where did that start and how long has it been going on?
Hedman: I don't know how it got started. I haven't been doing it for my whole career, but maybe the last four or five years me and Bubba have been doing it. No clue how it started to be honest with you. Time has flown by. We started it, and it worked and we've been doing it ever since.
Reporter:Has he ever had to put band aids on his fingers? Do you miss a lot?
Hedman:His nose. I hit his nose one time pretty hard. We won that game though, so maybe that's something I should do more often. Other than that, his fingers are used to it probably. So, not too bad.
Reporter: Will you continue doing it?
Hedman: Yeah, for as long as both of us are around, we will keep doing it. It's tough in some buildings when the bench is on the other side (of the ice). We've got to do it through the glass, but we'll keep doing it. It's part of my ritual and part of his ritual, just that superstition you have before every game."