Ben Shelley: Reviewing the season: Brent Burns

When Merkley's ready, put Burns back at forward, Karlsson at 1RD, Merkley at 2RD.

Burns defense has always been suspect and his defensive numbers kind of depend on who he's teamed up with on defense (not to mention his goalie being able to bale him out here and there; not something that Jones/Dell were able to do much the last couple of seasons)

Before Simek was injured he played great with Burns. This season when he returned things weren't quite the same; and Dillon (as much as I really like the guy) wasn't really a good match with Burns either.

Given the fact that the Sharks are really short on offense, and depending on what moves Wilson makes, I think there's a legit reason to explore moving Burns back to offense in the near future.

Burns benefited from having Pavs in front tipping shots in...he doesn't have that skill to benefit from now.
Burns defensive play has gotten worse as time has gone by and with the departures of Dillon and Braun there are less people to cover up his lapses. Simek was a good partner for him pre-injury but wasn't as effective last year. With others play lapsing on D such as Lebanc and Kane his gaffes become more pronounced. Goaltending hasn't bailed him out the past couple of years either but there are no excuses for his being waaaay out of position on numerous occasions.
Go back a few years and look at how effective he was as a forward, playing with Hertl and Jumbo. Given the loss of an entire 2nd line last year, he would better help the team by moving up to the forward line