Former Leaf Cody Ceci signs with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

We have another free agent signing to report. 

According to a breaking news report from National Hockey League insider Darren Dreger, former Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Cody Ceci is now a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins blue line. Dreger reports that this will be a 1 year deal and that it will pay Ceci $1.25 million which will also be his cap hit for the 2020 - 2021 regular season.

Dreger calls this an opportunity for Ceci to "reset" on a short term deal and it appears to follow a pattern from players that were likely not going to get the kind of money they were looking for in free agency. The shutdown forced upon the league by the pandemic has hurt the league and its teams financially and there has been a tightening of wallets around the league, especially when it comes to players that are outside of the elite tier of NHL players. 

Ceci has been a much maligned defenseman at times, both during his time with the Ottawa Senators and as well for his time with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and no doubt a large part of that stems from his pedigree as the 15th overall pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. His most recent season, his lone campaign with the Leafs, saw him pick up 1 goal and 7 assits for 8 total points and a plus minus rating of +7. He also scored for the Leafs during the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs where he appeared in 7 games for the Leafs inside the bubble.