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    Kings trade Sean Durzi to Arizona for a 2024 2nd-round draft pick
    • June 24, 2023

    The Kings have traded defenseman Sean Durzi to the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for a 2024 second-round draft selection, which originally belonged to the Montreal Canadiens.

    Durzi, 24, notched 65 points in 136 games over the past two campaigns, placing him second behind Drew Doughty among Kings defensemen in points-per-game average and 61st in the NHL among blue-liners since Durzi made his debut in November 2021.

    Acquired in 2019 in the Jake Muzzin trade with Toronto, Durzi’s development pace was accelerated two seasons ago when injuries felled the typically uber-durable Doughty. Durzi entered the mix and showed a propensity for power-play production, while enduring trials by fire on defense that made him less of a liability over time as well.

    “Sean is a reliable two-way defenseman who has good vision and contributes offensively,” Arizona general manager Bill Armstrong said. “He will be a very good addition to our blue line and we look forward to having him on our roster this season.”

    The Kings have been busy this offseason, using another young defenseman, prospect Helge Grans, and a second-round pick to sweeten a deal that sent struggling goalie Cal Petersen and the final year of defenseman Sean Walker’s contract to Philadelphia, offloading their salaries. They then signed trade-deadline acquisition Vladislav Gavrikov to a two-year contract extension, with the defenseman’s raise signifying that the Kings were again tight on cap space while remaining without a clear No. 1 goalie and having other peripheral concerns to address.

    Though Durzi stands to earn a relatively modest $1.7 million, largely because he is still under team control for two more seasons, the rationale for the trade goes beyond breathing room under the cap.

    The aforementioned trades, as well as one for winger Kevin Fiala last summer, had left the Kings short on higher draft selections as they dealt away their first-rounders this season and last, as well as a second-round pick next season and their third-rounders this season and next season.

    With Saturday’s move, the Kings acquire draft capital in the form of what projects to be a high pick in next year’s second round.

    Beyond that, defenseman Brandt Clarke, a lottery pick two seasons ago, is expected to be with the Kings full-time next season. He is also an offensive-minded, right-handed-shooting defender. Though Durzi showed an aptitude for playing the left side, the Kings may not have loved the stylistic fit of having two younger defenders with risk in their games paired together.

    Whether or not some other shoe will drop remains to be seen. The upcoming draft, held Wednesday and Thursday in Nashville, boasts a deep field of prospects and the Kings may trade back into the higher rounds if the right opportunity were to present itself. In years past, scouting guru Mark Yannetti revealed numerous contingency plans that the Kings had to move up and there was little doubt they had some for a strong talent pool.

    They also now may seek a left-handed-shooting partner for Clarke, though they have internal options like Tobias Bjornfot and Jacob Moverare and another promising right-shooting, offensively savvy rearguard in Jordan Spence. Spence projects to either begin the year in their top-six mix or as the No. 7 defenseman for depth purposes.

    More intriguing still, the Kings need to resolve their situation in net and have also been linked increasingly to trade talks for Winnipeg’s Pierre-Luc DuBois. The 25-year-old center can also play wing and could be an eventual successor to Anze Kopitar, but competition, asset cost and contract value may all be rather elevated on 2016’s No. 3 overall pick.

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    ​ Orange County Register 

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