Get to Know Davis Burnside
4/2/2024 1:53:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
Learn more about the forward from Arizona
Buckeye sophomore forward Davis Burnside was brought into the world of hockey by his father at five years old and never turned back. Although he is from Illinois, he grew up as a Pittsburgh Penguins fan and his favorite player was Sidney Crosby. Burnside looked up to Crosby throughout his childhood and enjoyed watching him play.
As a kid, Burnside loved his experience playing hockey. He shared that he was never the best on his team but took that as an opportunity to grow as a player and learn from those around him. He also made many friendships during youth hockey with people he still calls some of his best friends.
Even though he grew up as a Penguins fan, Burnside always looked up to Jonathan Toews from the Chicago Blackhawks. He would model his game after Toews and explained, "He played the game well and was a good leader, so I tried to model what he did and apply it to myself."
Burnside's playing career began with the Chicago Mission, where he spent seven years. At 15, he moved to Nebraska to play for the Tri-City Storm in the USHL. Burnside spent one and a half seasons with the Storm before finishing his season in the USHL with the Des Moines Buccaneers in Iowa. He remained with the Buccaneers for the first half of his next season and finished the year with the Dubuque Fighting Saints before coming to Ohio State.
Moving away from home at 15 was pivotal in Burnside's life. He explained it was a great learning experience and he matured much faster than he would have if he remained at home. He also added, "I made a lot of good friendships during my time in juniors and the teams I played on helped me get to where I am now."
When it came to choosing a college, Burnside was looking to go to a Big Ten school for the atmosphere and experiences in general and with hockey. He explained he fell in love with Ohio State during his first visit. He said, "I loved the campus immediately and the coaching staff was great." He shared, "I knew Ohio State was the place for me almost instantly."
Alongside hockey, Burnside is a communications major. He said balancing schoolwork with hockey is not easy - "It's a lot to handle but the university does a good job of providing us with resources to help us succeed." He added that if he uses the help available to him and puts in effort, he can maintain good grades.
A fun fact about Burnside is that he recently got a chocolate lab, Velo, with his roommates. During the offseason, he enjoys golfing and hiking in Arizona, where he now calls home. He likes to be outside as much as possible and said hiking was a good way to do that while also staying active. Burnside also recently got into playing tennis and enjoys playing with his friends.
Burnside currently wears number 23 for the Buckeyes. He used to wear 22, but it is retired at Ohio State, so he had to pick a new number. He explained he chose 23 because Michael Jordan was always a big name for him growing up near Chicago and thought it would be cool to wear the same number.
There is so much more to Burnside than just hockey. He loves dogs, being outside and playing tennis with his friends. He knew Ohio State was where he belonged after his first step on campus and hasn't looked back since.
