The Los Angeles Kings have locked up one of their depth defensemen, signing Kurtis MacDermid to a two-year contract extension. The deal will carry an average annual value of $875K, and allows MacDermid to avoid restricted free agency this offseason.
The 26-year old defenseman has become a regular in the Kings lineup, playing in 45 games this season. Though he only logged just under 14 minutes a night, MacDermid was an imposing figure on the back end that gave the Kings another physical presence. At such a reasonable cap hit he doesn’t need to become an impact player, but gives the team some certainty in what will be a very uncertain offseason.
Los Angeles has three other defensemen, Ben Hutton, Sean Walker, and Joakim Ryan all scheduled for free agency, meaning there will be plenty of opportunity for some of their younger players. Mikey Anderson and Tobias Bjornfot could potentially be full-time options, while other names like Sean Durzi and Kale Clague will be competing for jobs. MacDermid gives them another option to round out the bottom pair or seventh defenseman role next season.