Devils acquire Ryan Murphy from Wild in exchange for Michael Kapla

Minnesota Wild's Ryan Murphy (6). (Stacy Bengs/AP)

The Minnesota Wild and New Jersey Devils swapped a pair of defenceman in a minor trade Wednesday evening.

The Wild announced that the club has traded 2011 first-round pick Ryan Murphy to the Devils in exchange for Michael Kapla.

Murphy, 25, appeared in 23 games as a member of the Wild after signing as a free agent in 2017. The Aurora, Ont., native was originally drafted 12th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2011, though has never really lived up to the hype since. In 174 career NHL games between the Hurricanes and Wild, the smooth skating offensive defenceman has scored just eight times, adding 34 assists along the way. In 35 games with Iowa in the AHL this season, he has three goals and 12 assists.

Kapla, meanwhile, has scored one goal and added 15 assists in 45 games with the Binghamton Devils in the AHL this season. The 24-year-old left shot defenceman signed as a free agent out of the University of Massachusetts Lowell with the Devils in 2017, but has appeared in just five NHL games — and none since the end of the 2016-17 season. He carries a cap hit of $874,125 and will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season.

January 30, 2019 - 8:28 pm ET
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