Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns turns heads with bold statement at first press conference

Brent Burns walked into Colorado Avalanche camp looking almost unrecognizable, giving Jared Bednar a very different version of his veteran defenseman.

The trademark beard is gone. Burns arrived Wednesday clean-shaven, sporting a fresh haircut and new front teeth as Colorado opened the door on another season.

For a player whose massive beard became part of his identity across the NHL, the change immediately stood out. Burns had worn that look for more than a decade.

This isn't just another training-camp curiosity, either. Burns is preparing for his 23rd NHL season, a remarkable run that began when he broke into the league as an 18-year-old in 2003.

Colorado now gets the veteran at another interesting point in his career. The Avalanche are preparing to open their season against the Los Angeles Kings on September 30.

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Burns also enters camp carrying one of the league's most impressive active durability streaks. He has appeared in more than 1,000 consecutive NHL games.

That streak started in 2013, putting Burns within 57 games of Phil Kessel's NHL record of 1,064 straight appearances.

Brent Burns brings a new look into another long season

The visual change will draw attention first. The bigger story for Bednar and the Avalanche is that Burns is still preparing for another grind after more than two decades in the league.

His old look had become impossible to separate from his hockey identity. The beard was recognizable enough that the San Jose Sharks once featured it in a Chia Pet giveaway in 2016.

Now the beard is gone, the hair is shorter and Burns has a new smile. Training camp suddenly introduced a version of the veteran Colorado fans haven't seen before.

The timing makes the transformation even more noticeable. Burns isn't arriving as a young player trying to establish himself. He's entering another season with one of the longest careers still active in the NHL.

And the consecutive-games chase gives every appearance added meaning. Staying in the lineup for 57 more games would put Burns level with Kessel's record.

For now, Colorado's training camp has delivered an unexpected first headline. Brent Burns changed the look, but his next challenge remains familiar: stay in the lineup and keep the streak moving.

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