Kings Sign Defenseman Sean Durzi To Contract Extension

The LA Kings have signed defenseman Sean Durzi to a two-year, one-way contract extension worth an annual average value (AAV) of $1,700,000.
Durzi, 23, finished the 2021-22 season - his first in the NHL - with 27 points (3-24=27) and a team-leading 121 blocked shots in 64 appearances. His 19:36 time-on-ice average ranked fifth among all team defensemen while his 24 assists were the 10th-most by a Kings rookie defenseman in franchise history and the most since Drew Doughty (21) in 2008-09. Durzi also made his NHL Stanley Cup Playoff debut this past season, tallying three points (1-2=3) in seven appearances while his 21:30 time-on-ice paced all Kings defensemen and ranked second on the team to captain Anze Kopitar.

The 6-0, 195-pound blueliner opened the 2021-22 season with the Ontario Reign of the American Hockey League, posting 16 points (5-11=16) in 13 games before being recalled by the Kings. Since making his professional hockey debut with the Reign in 2019-20, Durzi has totaled 60 points (11-39=50) in 91 AHL appearances.
Durzi was acquired by the Kings in 2019 along with forward Carl Grundstrom and a 2019 first-round pick (Tobias Bjornfot) in exchange for defenseman Jake Muzzin of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Mississauga, Ontario native was originally picked by the Leafs in the second round (52nd overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft.
Prior to joining the Kings, Durzi skated four seasons (2015-19) in the Ontario Hockey League with both the Guelph Storm and Owen Sound Attack. His last OHL season came in 2018-19, where he tallied 17 points (3-14=17) in 18 games as an alternate captain with Owen Sound before a mid-season trade saw him finish the year collecting 20 points (8-12=20) in 17 games with Guelph. In the playoffs that season, Durzi tallied 27 points (3-24=27) in 24 outings to help Guelph capture the OHL Championship. For his efforts, he was also named to the Memorial Cup All-Star Team that same year. In 180 OHL games, Durzi collected 140 points (38-102=140) and added another 53 points (8-45=53) in 57 playoff games.