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40-year-old defenseman Brent Burns isn't done playing just yet, as he's decided to take his talents from the Carolina Hurricanes to the Rocky Mountains and has joined the Colorado Avalanche.
Burns, who has played in every regular season game for the last 11 consecutive seasons, agreed to a one-year contract. He will make a $1 million base salary but can earn another $3 million in incentives, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.
We have agreed to terms on a one-year contract with Brent Burns. pic.twitter.com/UNtkSPSmFq
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) July 3, 2025
With defenseman Erik Johnson entering free agency and by no means a guarantee to return, the Avalanche had to move quickly to fill the potential void he'd leave behind.
Burns has played the last two seasons with the Hurricanes after playing the majority of his career with the San Jose Sharks. Burns has been sent to the NHL All-Star Game six times during his career, and also won the Norris Trophy as the NHL's top defenseman in 2017.
He joins an Avalanche team whose blue line is led by multi-Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Cale Makar along with Devon Toews. While Burns will almost assuredly play a smaller role in Colorado than he's used to, he's shown he can still be a useful contributor, even into his late 30's.
In 1,497 career NHL games, Burns has scored 261 goals with 649 assists, while adding another 24 goals and 56 assists in 135 postseason games.
Brent Burns hasn't missed a regular season game in 11 years
Burns will begin his tenure with the Avalanche as the owner of the fourth-longest “Iron Man” streak in NHL history by having played in 925 consecutive regular season games.
Burns was originally selected by the Minnesota Wild in the iconic 2003 NHL Draft that produced dozens of future notable players. After playing the first several years of his career with the Wild, Burns was traded to the Sharks, who sent Devin Setoguchi, Charlie Coyle and a first-round pick in the 2011 NHL Draft back to the Wild in return.
It was in San Jose that Burns became known as one of the top defensemen in the NHL, and he would later be awarded the Norris Trophy for the first time in his career after he scored 29 goals with 47 assists in the 2016-17 NHL season.
A native of Barrie, Ontario, Burns has represented Canada on multiple occasions on the world stage and helped Team Canada capture the gold at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
