Brent Burns, Sharks Agree to New Contract: Latest Details, Comments, Reaction

The San Jose Sharks signed defenseman Brent Burns to an eight-year extension on Tuesday, according to NHL.com. 

The 31-year-old is in his 13th season in the NHL and helped the Sharks appear in their first Stanley Cup Final last season. 

According to Pierre LeBrun of ESPN.com, Burns' new deal is believed to yield an $8 million average salary per year. 

That would make him the NHL's second-highest-paid defenseman behind P.K. Subban of the Nashville Predators, per TSN's Gino Reda. 

One of the more colorful personalities in the league, Burns—who is distinguished by his unmistakable beard—has become one of the top two-way defensemen in the NHL:

A looming presence who is almost 6'9" on skates, Burns can move extremely well, which makes him a difficult defender to beat. 

On top of that, he possesses a monster slap shot that approaches the 100 mph mark. It helped him put up a career-high 27 goals and 75 points while finishing third in the Norris Trophy voting last year. 

It wasn't enough to defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins for the Stanley Cup over the summer. However, Burns has helped the Sharks reach new heights in their 25-year history.

Through 19 games this season, which was originally slated to be his final year before hitting free agency, he has seven goals, nine assists and a plus-two rating as San Jose ranks fifth in the Western Conference. 

Not only does this extension allow Burns to avoid free agency, but it will likely be his final contract as an NHL player, as he'll be 39 at the time of its expiration. 

Stats courtesy of Hockey-Reference.com.