The Skinny: Brent Burns
The chase continues
The pace will feel familiar. The style will not.
After three seasons in Raleigh, Brent Burns has swapped the safety of Carolina’s forecheck and defense by committee for Colorado’s freewheeling chaos. The fit would have appeared natural in 2018, but one has to wonder whether the 40-year-old blueliner has the goods to hang with the Avalanche in 2025.
There are a few encouraging signs. While Rod Brind’Amour’s system seldom allows for creativity on the breakout, the veteran D-man’s vision (CAR 8) slipped through the cracks every now and then:
Shoulder-checks to identify puck pressure and outlets —> spots daylight in middle ice (WSH’s F1 and F2 hugging the wall) —> gets his hips around him to hit Sebastian Aho (CAR 20) on the tape —> exit with speed. Burns remains capable of finding the open man, and if you let Colorado split your forecheck this easily, you’re in for a world of hurt.
In the OZ, the rearguard fully embraced Carolina’s high-volume philosophy. Game 3 vs. the Caps served as a showcase for his shooting repertoire:
Peep the quick release. Valeri Nichushkin, Gabriel Landeskog, Artturi Lehkonen and company must keep their heads on a swivel because Burns never takes his finger off the trigger and will pull it from anywhere.
With eye-popping rushes firmly in the rear-view mirror, the D-man will support his new team’s transition game through trailing routes. Alex Ovechkin (WSH 8) gets hypnotized by the puck, so Burns pivots onto his platform for a blast from middle ice. Useful spacing for high-flying, puck-dominant forwards like Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas.
Grant him extra time, and he can also stroll inside to convert decent touches into dangerous ones.
Outside of Cale Makar, Colorado was starved for initiative from the back end last season. Burns suffered through his own offensive dip (29 points), but his attacking instincts haven’t vanished. Moreover, his unparalleled volume from the point (first in shot attempts among D-men at 5-on-5) could re-emphasize the congestion that complemented the Avs’ skill so well a few years ago.
What about his roving?
Burns is slowing down and thus hasn’t leaned on his aggro tendencies in a minute, but he’s still a decent skater in a 6’5”, 228-pound body. In motion, his physical tools can mystify defenders. It’s not hard to imagine MacKinnon dragging opponents high in the OZ in order to initiate scissor exchanges that push the towering D-man downhill. Once he gains a step, good luck reclaiming it from him.
Factoring in a lighter burden (Toews-Makar is the workhorse duo), he brings 40-point upside as well as a directness that could slap some sense into the Avs’ attack. You can, in fact, score without chaining 17 cross-seam passes together.
The main question mark surrounding his game—as it’s always been—is defense. Burns won’t have Jaccob Slavin’s best-in-class insulation to rely on in Colorado, and this could prove concerning in the NZ:
Yes, he’s a mammoth. He doesn’t play as long as he could, though, conceding more territory and touches than a 6’5” defenseman should at the point of attack. His stick work is…inconsistent. The Avs may need his LD and a healthy dose of back pressure to compensate for his iffy gap control.
Lower in the DZ, Burns fares better than his reputation suggests:
Is this the cleanest defense you’ve ever seen? No, but disarray is…kind of his thing. He deploys his size and length to gum up the works. Doing so will be especially important given Josh Manson’s injury history. Even if Burns doesn’t start there, he may end up in the RD2 slot for prolonged stretches anyway. As such, he must stay afloat long enough for the Avs to regain possession and scream in the other direction.
The mere possibility of playing him on the second pair speaks to the low-risk, high-reward nature of this signing. In the end, he’s a big and talented RD who’s hungry for his first ring yet is making $1 million.
What’s not to like?
I love your analysis and respect your opinion. My gut, which counts for nothing, kept telling me as I was reading “He’ll have a couple big games but he’s toast.” It will be fun to keep an eye on. The price is certainly right.