Within three days, the 37-year-old defenseman was training at the Hurricanes facility and scouting for a home nearby, doing everything he could to make the transition smooth for him and his family. If back then there wasn’t time to reflect and say goodbye to his 11 seasons in San Jose, Burns will have a Friday.
After opening the season at home with a 4-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday, the Hurricanes visit the Sharks at the SAP Center (10:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, BSSO, ESPN+, SN NOW). The date popped up immediately when Burns saw Carolina’s schedule.
“I don’t usually watch that stuff, but this, yeah,” he said. “I don’t know if that’s good or bad. It will be fun to see the tank because the tank will rock.”
It will be the home opener for the Sharks, who started the season with two losses to the Nashville Predators in the NHL Global Series on October 7th and 8th in Prague. And it’s going to be an emotional night for Burns.
The long-bearded camouflage animal lover quickly became part of the Sharks core after he was acquired in a June 24, 2011 trade with the Minnesota Wild and rode with his bearded brother Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and shotgun Joe Pavelski. Together, they helped San Jose reach the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in 2016 before losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games.
Although Thornton (not signed), Marleau (retired) and Pavelski (with Dallas Stars) are also no longer playing for the Sharks, Burns will see plenty of familiar faces on Friday.
“It still feels weird to me going to ‘Minny’ and it’s been 11 years,” Burns said. “So yeah, it’s definitely going to be weird.”
With San Jose trying to rebuild on the fly after missing the Stanley Cup playoffs for the past three seasons, one of the first moves under new general manager Mike Grier after his July 5 hire was to trade Burns and Lane Pederson as the Forward forward to Carolina Stephen Lorentzpotential goaltender Eetu Makiniemi and a conditional third-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.
Burns, who has three seasons left of his eight-year deal signed in 2016, had to approve the deal before it could go through.
“He had three teams to trade to and we weren’t on that list initially,” said Don Waddell, the Hurricanes’ general manager. “So I spoke to San Jose and they spoke to his agent and he immediately said he was coming, so that was encouraging. When we worked it out and I spoke to him, he was here a few days later to buy a house and went back and got his family and moved here and he’s been in the gym ever since.”
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Burns, who won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s leading defenseman in 2016-17, was excited at the opportunity to play for a team with Stanley Cup ambitions. Carolina has qualified for the playoffs for the past four seasons but has not progressed past the second round since reaching the Eastern Conference Finals in 2019. He was also intrigued by playing for Rod Brind’Amour, the former Hurricanes captain who won the Jack Adams Award for NHL Coach of the Year in 2020-21.
“I’d always heard how special Rod is as a coach and what they’re building here,” Burns said. “It’s no secret in the league. I haven’t played them very often, but you could still tell that this wasn’t always a fun place to come and play. The skills work hard. I think that was something that was important. That was also important in San Jose when we were really good.
“And there were many temptations in the city. Obviously I love nature. There are just a lot of things.”
Burns wasted no time in delving into all of this. He and wife Susan, daughter Peyton, 12, son Jagger, 11, and daughter Olivia, 3, lived in the family’s RV for about a month while waiting to move into their new home, giving them a head start on the Settling in the area led to a search for schools, doctors and sports clubs for the children.
Jagger ended up on the same travel hockey team with Brind’Amour’s 10-year-old son Brooks.
“I’ve spent a lot of time with him and his family,” said Brind’Amour. “He’s really full of energy. I think it’s a good time to find a new place, be it here or elsewhere, for a man at this point in his career. I can remember this phase for myself. It’s not hard, but it’s like you get some fresh air when you go to a new place, and a new sense of energy.”
Spending the offseason in North Carolina instead of his Texas ranch also gave Burns a chance to meet some of his new teammates, including his defensive partner Jacob Slawin, who lives in the area year-round with his wife Kylie and their two young children. The Slavins proved to be a valuable resource with recommendations for real estate agents, schools and pediatricians.
“I’ve tried to help as best I can,” Slavin said. “He also came to church with me a couple of times, which was fun and just hanging out, it was good. … It’s fun to watch his passion for the game and off the ice he’s just such a real guy, really nice, really talkative, open to any conversation.”
Burn’s involvement in the gym with strength and conditioning coach Bill Burniston made an immediate impression. This commitment has helped Burns remain remarkably long-lived and productive through 18 NHL seasons.
Last season, Burns had 54 points (10 goals, 44 assists) and was third in the NHL with an average ice time of 26:09 in 82 games. He has 20 or more goals three times and 60 or more points five times, and his streak of 680 straight regular-season games is second only to active players Phil Kessel (983) of the Vegas Golden Knights.
“He’s just an animal,” said the Hurricanes’ captain Jordan Staal said. “He’s just ready to work. It literally fits the shape of a Carolina Hurricane.”
It was important for the Hurricanes to add Burns to their top defensive pair with Slavin and a power play point, but they equally value him for what his experience and personality can bring to their dressing room.
“He’s tall (6ft 5, 230 pounds). He can defend. He can collect points. There’s really nothing he doesn’t do,” Brind’Amour said. “Well, that in itself is pretty good. But when you add the bonus of the things with the character, the team aspect, I think that at the end of the day that blows teams.”
Burns is still aiming to win the trophy for the first time and would love to help the Hurricanes win their first championship since 2006. They’ll have to get through the long grind of the regular season first, but Burns is looking forward to the journey.
He already feels at home.
“I’m glad to be here,” Burns said. “Everything was great. It wasn’t a hard decision when this was brought up to come here and play with these guys. It was exciting.”
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