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The latest piece to Dean Lombardi’s summer-long science project appears to be done. A source close to the situation has confirmed to MayorsManor that the Kings and forward Kyle Clifford have agreed upon a new contract.

With the return of the 22-year old left wing, the Kings would have a trio of toughness, as he will be part of a roster that already includes Jordan Nolan and the recently acquired Dan Carcillo.

Clifford’s new contract will be for two years, similar to most of the other deals Lombardi has drawn up with his Restricted Free Agents this summer.

While many of the Kings players struggled coming out of the lockout, Clifford was clearly one of the better players early last season. Coach Darryl Sutter even had enough confidence to pair him with top-6 forwards in an effort to get those guys going.

Clifford finished the 48-game regular season with seven goals and 14 points, matching career highs set two years earlier during his rookie campaign of 2010-11. Obviously, projected out over a full 82-game regular season, this year’s output would have equated to new high-water marks for the Ontario, Canada native.

We’ll have a full interview with Clifford up later this morning.

How can the Kings afford him, given their salary cap issues though? We broke it all down for you in an article here.

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