San Jose Sharks Executive Vice President and General Manager Doug Wilson announced today that the club has signed defenseman Brent Burns to a five-year contract extension.

“We are thrilled that Brent has stepped forward and made long-term commitment to the San Jose Sharks, his new teammates and our fans,” said Wilson. “When we acquired Brent, it was our intention to make sure that he remained an important piece of our organization moving forward and we are very pleased that we have been able to do that. As an elite-level defenseman who is just entering his prime, we are looking forward to meshing Brent’s skills with our existing core group.”

Burns, 26, was named to the Western Conference All-Star team in 2010-11, appearing in 80 games and posting 46 points (17-29=46), which tied for 14th most amongst all NHL defensemen. Also amongst League defensemen, his 17 goals ranked third and his 8 power play goals were tied for third. He set career highs in points, goals, assists, penalty minutes (98) and shots (170) in 2010-11. Playing in every situation, he averaged 2:42 seconds of penalty kill time per game to go along with his 3:03 seconds of power play time per game.

The seven-year NHL veteran, all of which have come with Minnesota, has posted 183 career points (55-128=183) in 453 games played. He has appeared in 11 Stanley Cup Playoff games, posting three points (0-3=3).

Burns has made multiple appearances with the Canadian National Team including two World Championships (2010, 2008) and one World Jr. Championship (2003-04).

Originally selected by Minnesota in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft, Burns was acquired by San Jose on June 24 along with a second round selection in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft in exchange for forwards Devin Setoguchi, Charlie Coyle and a first round selection (28th overall) in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.