Sarah Burke joined the league as a blueliner in the S56 class, kicking off her career as a benchwarmer UDFA for the St. Louis Scarecrows. When it came time for the S55 SMJHL draft, she was selected 13oa by the Vancouver Whalers. It was here that she would go on to win her first Four Star Cup.

In the S56 SHL draft, Burke was selected 10oa by the Hamilton Steelhawks. However, she would never see ice time with the team, as just two days after signing she was traded to the Toronto Stars; a one-for-one exchange for the 2oa pick in the draft, Evangelos Giannopoulos. Just over one month later, Burke signed a 3-year contract extension with Toronto, fully expecting to make her SHL debut in the blue and white. However, 4 days after signing her extension, Burke was packaged up in a blockbuster deal with the Winnipeg Jets. She and her teammates, Daniel Kuster and James Kimanje, were handed over to the Jets along with two S57 1sts and a S57 2nd for just one player: Adam Barron.

In S58 after all the uncertainty of where she might land, Burke finally hit the ice in the big leagues wearing a Jets uniform. From there, she spent 4 seasons battling through some rough times with Winnipeg. In her time with the team, she reached a career low -66 +/- and accumulated a total of 115 PIM, 462 blocks, 386 hits, and 47 points. By the end of that four seasons, Winnipeg found itself dead last in the standings with just 3 wins and 58 losses on record. Despite their performance on the ice, Burke generally enjoyed her time with the team and got involved with its re-brand to the Aurora.

Towards the end of S61, Sarah Burke informed Aurora management that she intended to test free agency, giving them the opportunity to trade her and get some value ahead of time if they wanted to do so. While not averse to helping a team through its rebuild, Burke was disheartened to see some of her closest teammates leave the team and felt she needed a fresh start in the league. The result of her discussion with management was a trade to the Los Angeles Panthers for a S62 1st and a S64 1st.

For maybe the first time in her SHL career, Burke really felt at home with her new team. Not too long after the trade, she signed a 5 year extension and a full NTC with the Panthers. At the request of management, she switched to the offensive side of the puck and played on the wing for the next 5 seasons, putting up 281 points. In S65, she won her first Challenge Cup. During playoffs that year, she contributed 8 goals, 9 assists, 51 hits and a 20 +/-.

Statistically speaking, Sarah Burke never really impressed enough to garner any awards. Despite winning a cup, arguably her best seasons after the fact - in her last 4 seasons with LA, she put up 302 points playing at center.

In S70 Burke found herself in a three-way trade to the Atlanta Inferno, where she would play out the remainder of her career. By the time she retired in S73, Burke had played 924 games and accumulated a total of 672 points, 396 PIM, 19053 TOI, 929 blocks, and 1361 hits, and a -23 +/-.