The Colorado Avalanche announced Wednesday they’ve signed free-agent defenseman Brent Burns to a one-year contract.
The deal carries a $1-million cap hit plus games-played bonuses that can earn him another $3 million, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
This marks the 22nd NHL season for the 40-year-old veteran. Burns spent the last three seasons with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Burns put up 29 points while averaging 20:57 of ice time in 82 games with Carolina last season. He added a goal and four assists in 15 playoff appearances.
He’s just two years removed from a 61-point campaign in 2022-23 that saw him finish 10th in Norris Trophy voting.
Proven Track Record
Burns won the award as the NHL’s top defenseman in 2016-17 when he scored a career-high 29 goals with 47 assists. He was also a Norris finalist in 2016 and 2019 during his time with the San Jose Sharks.
The 6-foot-5, 228-pound defenseman has seen his physical game decline in recent years. He recorded a career-low 11 hits last season.
But he still knows how to get pucks through traffic and on net. His 174 shots last season ranked 17th among NHL defensemen.
That shooting ability could help Colorado’s net-front players like Gabriel Landeskog, Valeri Nichushkin, and Artturi Lehkonen.
Brent Burns, signed 1x$? by COL, is a veteran offensive defenceman. Plenty of stuff he can still do: shoot the puck, deliver a break-out pass, break up plays with his long reach. Does get walked more often than you’d like, does not hit, and can make the odd bad turnover.
Burns shoots right and projects to slot in on Colorado’s second defense pair with Sam Girard. The Avalanche could also keep the Girard-Josh Manson duo together and let Burns anchor a third pair alongside Keaton Middleton or Sam Malinski.
His 925 consecutive games played is the longest active streak in the league. It’s also the fourth-longest in NHL history.
Phil Kessel owns the ironman record at 1,064 straight games.
Burns is still chasing the first Stanley Cup ring of his career.
