- Editor's note: Sheng Peng will be a regular contributor to NBC Sports California's Sharks coverage for the 2021-22 season. You can read more of his coverage on San Jose Hockey Now, listen to him on the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast, and follow him on Twitter at @Sheng_Peng.
“I’m a young guy. I’m a young guy.”
Like a vampire resisting garlic, that was Brent Burns’s comical response when I asked him about being an older guy who is still playing at a high level.
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And hey, maybe that’s the state of mind that allows Burns, 37, to continue playing at a high level. Burns led the NHL with 2,144:02 played, almost 88 more minutes than runner-up (and much younger) Victor Hedman (2056:12).
But Time, of course, is undefeated. And the clock is ticking on Burns’s chance to win a Stanley Cup. He could’ve helped a winner in the last three seasons that the San Jose Sharks have missed the playoffs — he should still be able to help a contender next year.
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Burns, of course, has a limited trade clause — there are just three teams that the Sharks can trade him to — and they’re also going to respect what he wants to do, considering his immense contributions to the franchise.
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