Buffalo Serves as Inspiration for Indigenous Community

In honor and recognition of National Native American Heritage Month in November, we delve into the story of men's hockey alum Devin Buffalo '18, his upbringing, road to Dartmouth and how he has inspired so many people.

When Devin Buffalo received an offer to play hockey at Dartmouth, it didn't take him long to decide.

"I remember getting a call from Rosie (Big Green assistant coach John Rose)," said Buffalo. "My team was in Saskatoon on our road trip, and he said he would give me a call. That's when I received the offer."

Rose told Buffalo to take some time and talk it over with his family.
Devin Buffalo Story

"I called my parents right away and said I'm going to Dartmouth," said Buffalo. "I'm going to an Ivy League school; they were really happy and proud. I hung up the phone and called Rosie back and I think I caught him off guard because he expected me to take longer than 10 minutes to make this lifelong decision."

It was an easy decision for Buffalo. He had lifelong dreams of graduating from an Ivy League institution and playing professional hockey (both of which he would go on to achieve, as Buffalo played in the East Coast Hockey League in 2018-19).

Buffalo has broken stereotypes and served as an inspiration to so many Indigenous people along the way.

Here is Buffalo's story.

Buffalo's Background
Buffalo is a proud member of the Samson Cree Nation, located just south of Edmonton.

Around the age of five, Buffalo moved with his mother to a nearby town 15 minutes away from the reserve. Hockey became an important part in the lives of Devin and his five older brothers.
Devin Buffalo

"At one point, there were five goalies and one defenseman [amongst the brothers]," he said. "I learned from my older brothers how to play goalie, even though I wanted to be a little different and score goals. However, my dad came home with goalie pads one day and said to try it out, so I tried it out for a tournament… but didn't have the best of times."

The goalie experiment was short-lived, but Buffalo would later become a full-time goalie when the team he was playing with needed one.

And as they say, the rest is history…

"I fell in love with the sport and the pressure of being a goalie," he said.

Buffalo would thrive. He played a pretty athletic style to make up for his lack of size. As Buffalo admitted, he was never the "can't miss" prospect that looked ticketed to play in college or professionally.

"I just stuck in my lane and played the sport because I loved it," he said.

Something else would motivate him as well.

"Growing up in a small town close to the reserve, I witnessed racism around me," he said. "When I got to the ages of 18 and above, that's when I really noticed the incidents. That's when I started to use it as a driver and motivator to work hard and try to get far in school and hockey."

Buffalo was striving for the U18 AAA hockey team, the top level, which he would eventually make — first as a backup goalie.

"By the end of the year, I became the starting goalie and there was a big tournament in Calgary, which has a lot of scouts attend," he said. "During this tournament, there were a few Junior A hockey teams watching me play. But that's when I first started thinking about using my grades and my hockey to open doors to continue my career in college."

Buffalo would go on to play for a team called the Flin Flon Bombers in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League.

"I was splitting time as a starting goalie and by the playoffs, earned that starting position, and I won the league's Rookie of the Year," he said.

"My second year playing juniors, college teams start to take interest."

Convergence of Academics and Athletics
Education was always important in Buffalo's life.

"My mom was a school principal, so I hung around the school quite a lot growing up," he said. "My parents stressed the importance of education and really wanted me to do well in school. My dad always said that NHL scouts were going to look at my grades.

"I had a passion to do well in school from a young age, do well on exams, and challenge myself in the classroom."
Devin Buffalo

When the thought of playing in college arose, Buffalo knew he could take an important step to inspire the people around him, not only with hockey, but also academically.

"I wanted to show what Native people could do," he said. "We could go to any college or university we wanted if we worked hard."

Sure enough, Buffalo's coach at the time called Devin, asking if he heard of Dartmouth College because its men's hockey program was expressing interest.

"Being an Ivy League school, I was pretty excited and pumped because that was my dream," he said. "At home, there weren't a lot of people who attended school in the United States, especially an Ivy League school."

Buffalo would become a trailblazer.

Transitioning to Dartmouth
Buffalo had previously moved away from home to play junior hockey, but it didn't make moving to Dartmouth any easier.

"In the Indigenous community, it's tough to leave home," he said. "There's such a connection to home, our land and our family. Moving to New Hampshire, I was really nervous and scared and I remember breaking down while packing my bags, having a moment of tears.
Devin Buffalo Graduation Picture

"I didn't feel ready to go, but my mom really supported me and that support helped me step onto the plane [to Dartmouth]."

When Buffalo arrived to campus, it was as he said, "a completely new world to me."

Early on, Buffalo had some growing pains.

"It was a big struggle and in hockey too, we had two really good goalies, James Kruger and Charles Grant," he said. "I knew my role and did my best to be a great teammate, focusing on getting better in practice and being there for my team."

Buffalo was the third string goalie, suiting up at home, but not traveling to most road trips.

"The two things that were in my life that I excelled at — being a goalie and doing well in school — were not going my way," he said. "I remember calling my parents and wondering if it's worth it. Should I come home? They convinced me to keep working, keep grinding and keep working hard, and I would recharge in the summertime."

Buffalo did just that, coming back as a sophomore ready to go.

The Tides Would Turn
The hard work would pay off in multiple ways.
Devin Buffalo vs. UNH

"I started leaning towards a political science or government major," he said. "That fit better for me because I was able to write more papers rather than try to go the economics route, which was a good change for me."

On the ice, Buffalo had a breakthrough moment on Nov. 28, 2015 at Michigan. The Big Green had lost to the Wolverines the night before, 7-0.

Buffalo was on the trip. The next day, his number was called.

"When Coach read the starting lineup after we ate lunch, they said Buffalo and I remember all the players looked at me in a nervous way," said Buffalo. "We're playing the number 12 team in the country, got blown out the first game and now we're going to start our third-string goalie in this important game."

Buffalo hadn't started a game in approximately a year and a half, since before his Dartmouth days. He had made his collegiate debut earlier that month, entering in relief against Harvard.

"I had a decision to make, either convince myself I couldn't do it or embrace it," he said. "This is my moment… this is my chance. At that time, I was just a practice goalie essentially and I don't think the guys trusted I would get the job done."

Leading into that evening, Buffalo spent time visualizing the game.

The real thing would be everything he could dream of.

Buffalo entered with a mix of excitement and nerves, but from the beginning, he knew it was going to be a good night.

"It was one of those games where I just knew I was going to stop everything," he said. "I was on my game."

Dartmouth scored first before Michigan tied the score midway through the third period. The game ended in a 1-1 draw, with Buffalo stopping 37-of-38 shots sent his way in an incredible effort.

"It was a pretty special moment," he said. "My whole team gave me props and I think I convinced them that I was a good goalie, convinced the coaching staff and convinced myself that I could do it."

Next time out, Buffalo started and earned his first-career win at RPI. He went on to start two more games after that victory. Those marked his final appearances of the season, but a foundation had been built.

Buffalo went on to serve as starting goaltender over his junior and senior seasons, including a senior campaign which saw him garner team MVP, earn second team All-Ivy honors and be nominated for the Hobey Baker Award. He finished fourth place in fan voting.
Devin Buffalo Named A Nominee for Hockey Humanitarian Award

Devin Buffalo Named A Nominee for Hockey Humanitarian Award

Buffalo attributes much of his success later in his career to what happened early on.

"I really looked up to Jimmy and Chuck," said Buffalo. "And they were really good students, too. I looked up to them about how to be successful at Dartmouth.

"I knew my opportunity would come."

Buffalo took his opportunity and ran, impacting the Big Green with more than just his play.

"Devin was a leader at the rink, in the classroom and on campus," said Brian Corcoran, Dartmouth's Director of Men's Hockey Operations. "I feel like I run out of superlatives talking about him. He worked so hard every day. He knew coming in that he wasn't going to be the starting goalie, but he practiced like he was. Those around him tended to gravitate towards him.

"He was a quiet voice, but when he spoke, people listened."

Post Dartmouth Days
Now, post Dartmouth, Buffalo is striving for another dream.

Law school.

There was a point in which Buffalo felt, as he said, "stuck". He didn't know what his next step would be when the idea of law school came to mind.

"It felt like time to apply myself and try to achieve another dream," he said. "I spent the year studying for the LSAT, working through a study book and applying to all these schools."

Buffalo loved being home, so enrolled in law school at the University of Alberta.

"I was happy to come home, share my journey and try to do positive things for the youth around my home, while also pushing forward and raising the bar for myself," he said.

It wouldn't be possible by himself.

"Having a great support system is needed, and I wouldn't make it the end of law school without my partner and two stepchildren," said Buffalo.

Touching So Many Lives
In challenging himself, Buffalo is also paving a path for the younger generation in so many ways. It has happened at home in Canada, but also in the United States surrounding his Dartmouth experience.

Take one example.
Devin Buffalo Waniska Athletics

A young Indigenous hockey player and his father reached out to Corcoran, the Big Green's Director of Operations since 2013.

"We have talked many times over the years, and still keep in contact to this day," said Buffalo. "I get updates on his hockey journey, some issues of racism that he's going through and asked how to navigate the situation. I shared how I went through some racist incidents and instead of using it as a negative, I wanted to flip that script or flip the stereotypes that were placed on me."

How did Buffalo do that?

"Others may believe in these negative stereotypes, so I had to work extra hard or convince others of my character and really make sure they knew me as a person," he said.

In 2020, Buffalo turned the thought of serving as a role model for others into something very tangible, creating Waniska Athletics.

"I always had this idea of giving back to the Native community, but also sharing my story so other Native hockey players could relate with it or use it as motivation," he said. "I remember going to a hockey camp. One night, I couldn't sleep and was up writing notes and getting all these ideas down of what I wanted to start."
Devin Buffalo Waniska

Buffalo thought of the word waniskâ, a Cree word meaning wake up and rise.

"I use that as waking up and rising in training, but also waking up with the awareness of what we can accomplish in education and in sport," he said. "When I was a kid, I didn't really have a connection with a role model that was really doing well in school and in athletics."

There were some success stories, but Buffalo wants to make sure he is accessible to have discussions with the youth and help them navigate their athletic and academic careers.

"I never really met [the success stories] in person," said Buffalo. "There was no one really telling me, besides my parents, that I could be a good student and athlete… and go to a top institution for both.

"I want to share my story, hopefully motivate some Indigenous youth that if you work hard, you have good character, you're a good teammate and you work hard in school, so many doors can open."