• Played in the University Cup three times, scoring 16 points in eight games
• As co-captain, he scored 66 points in 38 games to become the Bears MVP; selected as a CWUAA Second Team All-Star and a member the CIAU University Cup All-Canadian team.
• Scoring leader on the 1980 Canadian Olympic team.
• Played professionally in Switzerland (1980-81).
• Assistant coach of the Bears hockey team (1982-84) and head coach of the Fort Saskatchewan Traders (1986-87).

A life long Edmontonian, John followed in his family’s tradition of involvement in all aspects of minor sports in the City of Edmonton. John’s minor hockey career began on the outdoor rinks and continued on through all levels of the K of C minor hockey program. Excelling in this program, he was a member of back-to-back Juvenile AA provincial championship teams in 1975 and 1976 and in his final year was the team captain as well as the league’s leading scorer.

Coming out of minor hockey, he was recruited by several schools in both Canada and the United States, but the outstanding quality and tradition of the Golden Bears Hockey program made it an easy decision for him to follow his three older brothers to the University of Alberta.

John began his collegiate career with the Golden Bears in 1976-77 and during three seasons wearing the green and gold he helped Alberta win two CIAU University Cup national championships and three Canada West conference crowns.

In his freshman season, the Golden Bears hosted the 1977 University Cup Final at Varsity Arena and fell 4-1 to the Toronto Varsity Blues before a sell-out crowd. The next two seasons would see th Golden Bears return to the University Cup Final winning the national title in 1978 with a 6-5 win over Toronto in Moncton and successfully defending their title in 1979 with a 5-1 win over Dalhousie University Tigers in Montreal. John led the tournament in scoring that season with 3 goals and 8 points as the Golden Bears played to a perfect 3-0 record. In his three University Cup appearances, John scored 8-8-16 in 8 games to rank seventh on the tournament’s all-time scoring list.

John’s outstanding leadership qualities saw him named as he golden Bears’ assistant captain in 1977-78 and the teams’ co-captain in 1978-79. In his final season, John dominated as the teams’ outstanding player and scoring leader (26-38-66 points in 38 games). He was voted the Bears’ MVP, won a berth on the Canada West 2nd All-Star Team, as well as on the CIAU University Cup All-Tournament Team. Outstanding attributes for an outstanding player.

1980 was an Olympic year and Father David Bauer invited a number of highly regarded young players to join his Olympic Team Selection Program. John Devaney, together with four other Golden Bears and Coach Drake, was selected to the 1980 Olympic team as Canada returned to the international stage for the first time since 1968.

His deceptive speed, “heads-up” team play, superb hand-eye coordination and fierce competitiveness not only won him a spot on Canada’s 1980 Olympic hockey team, it also help to make him Canada’s second highest scorer in pre-Olympic play. John went on to lead the Canadian team in scoring in Olympic Tournament play including games against the powerful USSR and the eventual Olympic gold medalists, the USA.

Following his play with the Canadian Olympic Team, John played professionally in Switizerland with EHC Visp. in1980-81. At the end of that year John returned to Canada and the Golden Bears as an assistant coach for two seasons (1982-83 and 1983-84). In 1986-87 John continued as a coach with the AJHL’s Fort Saskatchewan Traders. Following his season with the Traders, John made the decision to leave behind competitive hockey in order to focus on his professional career as a chartered accountant. Today John is a CA and partner in the firm of Pennock Acheson, Nielsen Devaney. But his love of the sport of hockey still burns brightly.

This Sports Wall of Fame Inductee remains highly committed to developmental programs for children. He has coached minor hockey in Edmonton from 1998 to the present; was a volunteer with the 2002 Canadian Olympic Congress Mini Olympics for Kids, and is a former director of the Boys and Girls Club of Edmonton. He is never far from the University of Alberta’s hockey program through his links with the Golden Bears Hockey Alumni Association - a group of dedicated “former Bears” - of which he was a founding member.

An Olympian, a University Cup All-Star, a peer-selected MVP, a coach, and a leader within the community, John Devaney has added immeasurably to the hockey history of Edmonton, Alberta, and his alma mater, the University of Alberta. The University is proud to welcome John to the Sports Wall of Fame.