IHC Alumni Bio – Brent Burns – Grizzly Norris Winner
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Brent Burns has emerged as one of the biggest personalities in the NHL, while also being one of the better puck-moving defensemen in the NHL. He played one year in the OHL with the Brampton Battalion where he had 40 points in 68 games which led him to be drafted 20th overall to the Minnesota Wild. Burns would play six full seasons for the Wild scoring 183 points in 453 games in his time there.
But during the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, Burns was traded with a second round pick in 2012 to the San Jose Sharks for Devin Setoguchi, Charlie Coyle and a first round pick in 2011. Burns became an instant star in San Jose as he had 46 points and 98 penalty minutes his first year with the Sharks. But during his second year in San Jose, the Sharks would move Burns to the right-wing, where he had instant success scoring 20 points in 30 games that season.
Burns’ 2016-2017 would be one for the books as he not only put up 75 points and had a 19 +/- that year, but also won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenceman. While being the only Sharks defenceman to win the award, Burns is also the Sharks all-time leader for points, goals and assists by a defenceman.
Burns has also been recognized by the NHL for his work in the community, winning the NHL Player Foundation Award in 2015. Over the years Burns and his family have supported numerous military organizations, and stated “Burnzie’s Buzzcut” which is a fundraiser in which he and his teammates shave their heads to raise money and awareness for charities like the San Francisco Zoo and the Katie Moore Foundation.