Now that the Carolina Hurricanes' playoff run is over, they are gearing up for what should be a busy off-season. It is fair to assume that the Metropolitan Division club will be aggressive this summer after losing in the Eastern Conference Final to the Florida Panthers in just five games.
The Hurricanes have several pending free agents heading into the summer, and defenseman Brent Burns is easily among the most notable. If the 40-year-old blueliner wants to continue his NHL career, the Hurricanes will need to decide whether or not they want to re-sign him.
Burns had a large role with the Hurricanes this season, as he played on the top pairing with star blueliner Jaccob Slavin. In addition, the veteran defenseman saw time on both the Hurricanes' power play and penalty kill. Therefore, if he is not back with the Hurricanes next season, other defensemen will need to step up.
If Burns is not ready to hang up the skates, he could be a player worth keeping around on an affordable short-term deal. While his offensive numbers have dropped compared to his prime years, he was still an important part of Carolina's defense this season and a good leader in their room.
Yet, with the Hurricanes having younger defenseman like Scott Morrow and Alexander Nikishin making cases for full-time roles, it is fair to wonder if Carolina could decide to move on from Burns.
Nevertheless, it is going to be fascinating to see what happens with Burns this off-season. In 82 regular-season games this year with Carolina, he had six goals, 29 points, and a plus-7 rating. He followed that up with one goal, five points, and a plus-1 rating in 15 playoff games this spring.
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