The bulk of NHL free agency is over and all the biggest names on the market are off the board. As teams and fans look back on what was a wild free agency, it is time to look at who some of the winners of this offseason were in free agency.
Harman Dayal of The Athletic put out a list of the top 10 best free agent signings of NHL free agency. For his fourth best sign, Dayal signed former Carolina Hurricane Brent Burns, who signed a one-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche.
“His point production on the power-play collapsed last season and he was inconsistent defensively at times in the regular season. With that said, he still ranked top-50 among NHL defensemen at producing five-on-five points and is an elite penalty killer,” Dayal said. “Coming to Colorado, he’ll be able to slot in nicely behind Cale Makar and Josh Manson on the right-side depth chart. Handling fewer minutes and easier matchups should do wonders for Burns’ two-way effectiveness at even strength. He’ll also be nice top-four insurance in case of blue-line injuries.”
Though he is aging, Burns still serves as a solid depth piece for Colorado. If someone like Makar went down, Burns will be able to play quality hockey in place of the star. The cheap contract also makes this signing among the best this offseason. If Colorado hits their cap space Burns’ deal will not count against it.
