In part two of this Rays On The Record interview with Marc Busenburg, the Stingrays’ Joe Shetrom talks with the veteran blueliner about suiting up for two pro teams in the same day, playing at UConn and his propensity for dropping the gloves.


JS:  Did you get to talk to Bob Barker off-camera or get his autograph?
MB:  I didn’t [get his autograph], but I got to talk to him a little bit more during the commercial breaks and stuff like that.  He was talking about hockey fans…and the Happy Gilmore thing.  We had a good laugh.

JS:  You played for two teams in the same day during the 01/02 season, suiting up for the AHL’s Rochester Americans and the UHL’s Adirondack IceHawks.  How did that happen?
MB:  I actually did 5 games in 4 days.  I was in Rochester on Wednesday, and Thursday, Adirondack wanted me to play in Elmira .  I played in Elmira, then went back to Rochester Friday night.  I played in Albany with Rochester for a 1 o’clock game, and then as I was getting undressed…all of a sudden I see our coach standing at the end of the locker room, pointing his finger at me to come over.  (Laughing) I’m like, “Uh oh, what’s going on?”  He asked me to play, and I told him I didn’t know how much I could give him.  He said they only had four defensemen, so I went up and played the 7 o’clock game.
JS:  How much sleep did you get the next day?
MB:  Oh, I slept for a long time.  I also dropped probably 8 pounds. 

JS:  Is it true you know how to drive a Zamboni?
MB:  Yeah, I spent a summer in Nantucket Island, Massachusetts , just looking for an extra job.  It was pretty expensive living on that island, so I went to the rink.  I thought, I’ve grown up in a rink, I might as well see if I can get a job there.  They said they needed a Zamboni driver and asked if I had ever driven one.  I said “Nope, but I grew up watching them.”  After a few days I was driving the thing everyday.  It was a pretty good experience.  (Laughing) I said maybe there’s life after hockey.

JS:  You’re not really known for the fisticuffs, but you did drop the gloves against Colby Armstrong a few years back during a line brawl.
MB:  Yeah, it’s my only AHL fight.  I fought once in and I got suspended for 2 days because you’re not supposed to fight there.  My first fight was when we (Adirondack) were in Binghamton when they used to be the B.C. Icemen.  I actually fought Rob Voltera, and it was funny because we came back the next year (to Hershey) and he was my roommate at a hotel.  I said, “Do you remember jumping me?”  He’s like, “What do you mean?”  I said, “You jumped me.  I remember I hit you and we both fell and I turned around and you had your gloves off coming after me.”  (Laughing) He said, “I don’t remember that, but that’s probably me.”  And then I think my second fight I fought (Shawn) Legault who was in Elmira .  He was about to hit somebody in the back of the head, so I kind of flipped his arm and he turned around and started fighting me.  So I said what the heck, let’s do it.  After the fight, you know, I didn’t fare too well, and the coach is like, “We’ve got other guys to do that.”  I think that year we had 8 tough guys on the team, so it was kind of funny.  Yeah, I haven’t been known for it but if it happens it happens.

JS:  You went to UConn ( University of Connecticut ), which isn’t a hotbed for hockey.  How did you end up there?
MB:  I was playing Division 3 when I came out of high school, and I looked into playing juniors or something but I just wanted to get my schooling over with.  I was actually looking at a lot of schools for meteorology and ended up looking at a couple business schools.  I liked UConn; I think I was only 155 pounds when I graduated high school, so I wasn’t getting looked at by too many people.  I picked UConn, which was “D-3” (Division-III) at the time.  We ended up going “D-1” after my junior year, so it was a good experience there.  (Laughing) I gained 15-16 pounds within the first month; all I did was eat and sleep.
JS:  Are there any other notable hockey players to come out of UConn?
MB:  There was Todd Krygier (who played in the NHL with Hartford, Anaheim and Washington ), and then I think I was the next guy to play at the AHL level.  We’ve had a handful of guys to play in the East Coast (ECHL) and UHL before and after me.

JS:  What did you get your degree in?
MB:  Health Systems Management.

JS:  What would you like to do, post-playing career-wise?
MB:  I wouldn’t mind getting into real estate and maybe “flipping” houses. 

JS:  How many more years would you like to play?
MB:  My body’s still saying I can do it, and I still love the game.  I always said if I’m not loving the game, or my game starts to deteriorate I’ll hang them up.

JS:  What would you say have been the high and low points of your career so far?
MB:  I’d say my high point was playing the exhibition game, but also the five games in four days…
JS:  What about The Price Is Right?
MB:  (Laughing) Yeah, The Price Is Right.  I’ll never be able to live that one down.

JS:  Do you fear you’ll be known as The Price Is Right guy for the rest of your career?
MB:  (Laughing) I think so.  It’s kind of funny, every team I go to I’ll look up my player bio…all of a sudden, the last quote is “He appeared on The Price Is Right.”  


Come join the Stingrays for their 15th Anniversary Season! The 2007-08 season begins on Oct. 20 at 7:05 p.m. as the Rays take on in-state rival Columbia Inferno! Deposits are being taken now for the 2007-08 South Carolina Stingrays season tickets! For just $100 you can reserve your seat to every hard-hitting, action-packed game at the North Charleston Coliseum. For more information including benefits, pricing, and package options, please call the Stingrays front office at 744-2248 or view the information online at www.stingrayshockey.com. Stingrays Hockey – A Whole Lot Cooler!