The Ducks have resigned forward Todd Marchant to a two-year contract that will pay the defensive specialist $1 million next year and $1.25 million in 2010-11.

“We’re pleased that Todd will remain a Duck for the next two seasons,” Ducks general manager Bob Murray said in a statement. “His versatility on the ice and presence in the locker room is something this club has deeply valued over the past four seasons.”

Marchant, 35, notched five goals and 18 points in 72 games last season, his fourth in Anaheim. Marchant also appeared in all 14 of Anaheim’s Stanley Cup Playoff contests, contributing one assist and one goal — the triple-overtime winner in Game 2 of the conference semifinals on May 3 at Detroit.

Marchant was coming off the final year of a contract that paid him $2.66 million in 2008-09. Though he expressed a desire to stay in Anaheim, he was seeking the stability of a multiyear contract, something the Ducks were not initially offering.

“The (duration of the contract) was a little bit of an issue for both sides,” Marchant said in a conference call with reporters. “We were entertaining offers from other teams. We had several other teams that were willing to offer a 2-year term. That’s when we went back to the Ducks and asked for the same thing. I expressed to Bob and Dave McNab that Anaheim was my first choice; that’s where we wanted to be. Once we agreed on the term of a 2-year contract, we got the deal done pretty quickly.”

More details on the contract in tomorrow’s editions…

Asked about the Ducks’ recent roster changes, Marchant was his usual vociferous self.

“If you look at the situation with Francois (Beauchemin), we didn’t have him for a better part of the regular season. We were fortunate to get him back in the playoffs. He’s a tremendous player and a great teammate. He was in a different situaiton than a lot of us. He’s 29 years old, spent a lot of time in the minors, finally got his shot with Anaheim and proved himself to be an NHL player. This was an opportunity to, quote unquote, hit a home run, and he obviously did that with Toronto.

“With the Pronger situation, take nothing away from Chris, he’s a tremendous player but it gives an opportunity for someone else to step up and show he can play this game. Take Brett Festerling — when Beauchemin went down, he got some time to show he can play in the NHL. So did Brendan Mikkelson and Brian Salcido, who played only two games for us but can also play well. The organization believes they can step up and be NHL players. In Chris’ circumstance, with the salary cap where it is and with the Ducks’ budget, they didn’t feel they could carry both Scott and Chris. Bob was able to make a deal to bring back Loops (Joffrey Lupul) and a young prospect in (Luca) Sbisa, and also get two draft picks. It definitely helps the future of the franchise. Who knows where those two assets will be this coming season? Hopefully they will be what they expect them to be.

“Sbisa, he should have been with Philadelphia all season but because of cap problems, they couldn’t send him to the minors and they had to send him to juniors.

“I’ve talked to Chris, Francois. I wish them nothing but the best, but it was time for us to move on.”