Dustin Ray Byfuglien was born on March 27, 1985 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. When he moved to Roseau, Minnesota along with his mother, he was exposed to the game of hockey through his stepfather who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). He learned to love the sport which turned into a calling. He is known by the name of “Big Buff” with his monstrous belly.

Byfuglien, however, had an academic ineligibility so he had to move to Warrenville, Illinois to play AAA under-18 hockey for the Chicago Mission. He later moved to Canada to play major junior hockey for both the Brandon Wheat Kings and Prince George Cougars of the Western Hockey League (WHL).

In 2003, Dustin was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks and spent parts of his first two seasons with the Blackhawk’s minor league team. In his third season, he became the first Rockford IceHogs player to earn the AHL Player of the Week award after scoring one goal and five assists in four games. He got seven points in eight games with the Rockford before he was recalled by the Blackhawks on November 3, 2007 and never returned with the IceHogs.

During the 2007-2008 NHL season, Byfuglien made a goal in his first shift with the Blackhawks against the St. Louis Cardinals. He made his first career hat trick on November 30 against the Phoenix Coyotes. He had 19 goals and 36 points in his third season with the team. During the team’s Stanley Cup winning playoff run, he scored 11 goals and 5 assists in the playoffs, getting three goals in the Finals.

Dustin Byfuglien was traded by Chicago to the Atlanta Trashers on June 24, 2010, along with Brent Sopel, Ben Eager and Akim Aliu for the Thrashers' 1st and 2nd round pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, as well as veterans Marty Reasoner, Joey Crabb, and Jeremy Morin. He became an alternate captain for the team after a few months during the 2010 season. He was selected to his first All-Star Game with teammate Tobias Enstrom.

The Thrashers signed Dustin “Big Buff” Byfuglien to a five-year contract extension worth $26 million on February 15, 2011. During the 2011-2012 season, he scored 12 goals with 41 assists. The team moved to Winnipeg, becoming the second incarnation of the Winnipeg Jets. He played in a total of 66 games during that season with the Jets. He made a slap shot which clocked at 102.5 mph in the 2011 All-Star Game’s Skill Competition.