Report: Brent Burns Signs 8-year Deal
The San Jose Sharks have reportedly signed Brent Burns to 8-year contract worth $64M. Burns will earn an AAV of $8M and the deal will carry through until his 40th birthday.
Analysis: This is an excellent deal for the Sharks. For starters, there really is no one quite like Brent Burns in the game of hockey. He brings a ton of size with his mountainous 6’5” frame, however his skating and mobility is what sets him apart from other large defenders. Then there’s his offense. Few defensemen can produce in the same way Burns does. Sure he probably won’t ever put up more points than Erik Karlsson, but he’ll score a heck of a lot more. His 27 goals last year were the most by a defensemen since Mike Green’s 31 goal season in 2008-2009.
Now let’s talk about the deal itself. Burns is no doubt worth $8M a year. He is already an essential part of the San Jose Sharks and will play an even bigger role once Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau retire. However, the deal is also heavily front loaded. Burns will make $54M in the first 6 years and only $10M in the last two years. This makes it an extremely cap-friendly deal for the Sharks moving forward.
Looks like Burns will plenty of time to continue growing out his beard in the bay area.
