Veteran defenseman Brent Burns is officially off the market.
The 40-year-old blueliner has signed a one-year contract with the Colorado Avalanche, the team announced on Wednesday.
According to Elliotte Friedman, the deal carries a base salary of $1 million for the upcoming season and includes potential games-played bonuses that could increase his earnings by an additional $3 million.
Burns spent his last three seasons with the Carolina Hurricanes, participating in all 246 regular-season games and 41 playoff contests. However, his offensive production last season saw a dip, with just six goals and 23 assists, marking his lowest totals since the shortened 2020-21 campaign.
The hulking right-shot defender is also notable for holding the longest active ironman streak in the NHL, having skated in 925 consecutive games. This impressive run was nearly interrupted in the final game of the regular season against the Ottawa Senators, but he managed to play 24 seconds in the 7-5 loss to keep it alive.
He currently sits 139 games behind Phil Kessel`s all-time record.
Throughout his extensive NHL career, Burns has registered 910 points (261 goals, 649 assists) over 1,497 regular-season games. In 135 career playoff appearances, he has added 24 goals and 56 assists.
Signing Details
Player: Brent Burns
Signed by: Colorado Avalanche
Length: 1 year
Contract Type: Free Agency
Salary Cap Hit: $1 million
Total Base Salary: $1 million
Potential additional $3 million in bonuses.
Tristan Blackwood