Life after the Game: Shawn Burr former NHL'er, now Financial Planner

Sean Mitton, Canadian Expat Network

Today, former NHL'er Shawn Burr is a wealth management advisor at Morgan Stanley.  Since retiring in 2000, the 16 year pro credits his experience in being a players' representative for 10 years in helping him find his vocation for life after hockey.

Burr grew up in Sarnia, Ont., went on to play with Detroit, Tampa Bay and San Jose and now resides in the Greater Detroit area. "I learned a lot being a player rep," Burr recalls. "As a Union, we went into negotiations with the owners with a mutual understanding of the lowest offer we could accept. The owners came back with an offer much lower than that. During the negotiation period, there were 22 more offers!"

"I got into finance for the right reason," mentions Burr, who received his financial education at the Center of Financial Planning.

Burr saw the challenges in players handling their own money. "I saw some pretty good players with millions in checking accounts. Then there were the young guys, who got their first contracts and had friends and family who wanted loans to buy property without putting any of their own money down", Burr states.

Known to some in the locker room as "Burrsy", he continues to follow hockey and has season tickets to the Red Wings. He has held the position of President of the Red Wings Alumni. Burr was a physical 3rd line winger and likes the playoffs, when hockey gets back to its roots as a more physical defensive battle, which he enjoyed.

When asked what was one of the hardest things to transition in life after hockey, Burr laughs about the afternoon nap. "Hockey players are creatures of habit. After 16 years, I got used to the afternoon snooze."