The versatility that allowed Burns to play forward or defense helped him fashion an NHL career, but the decision by the San Jose Sharks to have him focus on playing defense turned him into a force on the ice.

Born in Barrie, Ontario, Burns spent the 2002-03 season with Brampton of the Ontario Hockey League after being selected by the Minnesota Wild in the first round (No. 20) of the 2003 NHL Draft. He made his NHL debut with the Wild on Oct. 8, 2003, against the Chicago Blackhawks, and scored his first NHL goal in his third game, against the Sharks.

The versatility that allowed Burns to play forward or defenseman helped him fashion an NHL career, but the decision by the San Jose Sharks to have him focus on playing defenseman turned him into a force on the ice.

Born in Barrie, Ontario, Burns spent the 2002-03 season with Brampton of the Ontario Hockey League after being selected by the Minnesota Wild in the first round (No. 20) of the 2003 NHL Draft. He made his NHL debut with the Wild on Oct. 8, 2003, against the Chicago Blackhawks, and scored his first NHL goal in his third game, against the Sharks.

The Wild saw Burns more as a defenseman than a forward. In 2006-07, Burns became the first NHL defenseman in four years to score overtime winners in back-to-back games; he did it on March 11, 2007, against the Colorado Avalanche and two nights later against the Vancouver Canucks.

Burns played all 82 games for the first time in 2007-08 and set a Wild record for defensemen with eight power-play goals. His 46 points (17 goals, 29 assists) in 2010-11 set a Wild single-season mark for defensemen and earned him his first trip to the NHL All-Star Game.

The Wild traded Burns to the Sharks on June 24, 2011, and he made his San Jose debut Oct. 8, 2011, against the Phoenix Coyotes. On Oct. 15, 2011, he scored his first goal for the Sharks in a 4-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues.

The Sharks moved Burns to forward during the 2012-13 season, and he blossomed in 2013-14, scoring 22 goals and getting his first NHL hat trick against the Blues on Nov. 29, 2013.

San Jose returned Burns to defenseman in 2014-15; he scored 17 goals and finished tied for second among NHL defensemen with 60 points. Burns also won the NHL Foundation Player Award for outstanding charitable and community work.

He had a breakout season in 2015-16, finishing with 75 points (27 goals, 48 assists), then had 24 points (seven goals, 17 assists) in 24 Stanley Cup Playoff games to help the Sharks reach the Final for the first time since entering the NHL in 1991.

Burns was even better in 2016-17, piling up 76 points (29 goals, 47 assists) and becoming the first player in Sharks history to win the Norris Trophy, awarded to the NHL's top defenseman. He followed that with 67 points (12 goals, 55 assists) in 2017-18; and then had an NHL career-high 83 points (16 goals, 67 assists) in 2018-19, leading all defensemen in scoring while playing all 82 games for the fifth straight season.

Burns was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes on July 13, 2022. He had 54 points (10 goals, 44 assists) and was third in the NHL averaging 26:09 of ice time in 82 games of his final season with the Sharks. On Jan. 29, 2023, Burns became the fifth player in franchise history to play his 1,300th NHL game with the Hurricanes/Hartford Whalers, following Rod Brind'Amour (Dec. 20, 2007), Glen Wesley (March 27, 2006), Paul Coffey (Feb. 18, 1999) and Ron Francis (Feb. 10, 1999). He had two assists in a 6-2 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Dec. 2, 2023, to reach 600 in the NHL. He was the seventh defenseman in NHL history, ninth active player and lone active defenseman to hit the milestone.

Burns returned for his 22nd NHL season after signing a one-year contract with the Colorado Avalanche on July 2, 2025. He joined Phil Kessel (1,064 games) as the only players in NHL history to play 1,000 consecutive games with two shots on goal in 18:16 of ice time in Colorado's 2-0 win at the Dallas Stars on April 4, 2026.