Pending unrestricted free agent defenseman Cody Ceci hopes to begin talks on a contract extension with the Sharks later this month, he told Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News on Wednesday.
San Jose general manager Mike Grier acquired Ceci from the Oilers and a 2025 third-round pick in exchange for depth defender Ty Emberson in August. Ceci is in the final season of a four-year deal with a $3.25MM cap hit, which ended up being a tad too rich for incoming Edmonton GM Stan Bowman’s blood as he looked to retool the roster for another run to the Stanley Cup Final.
The trade has worked out reasonably well for both sides. The Oilers gained over $2MM in cap space and have gotten serviceable minutes out of Emberson, who has five assists and a minus-four rating in 37 appearances. San Jose gained a veteran presence who can log heavier minutes in Ceci, who’s averaging 22:02 per game this season – second on the team behind Jake Walman.
The 31-year-old Ceci has 11 points through 42 games, roughly in line with the offensive totals many have come to expect from the 2012 first-round pick. He leads the team with 73 blocked shots, but that’s also indicative of a lack of possession control. His 43.1 CF% at even-strength is fifth-worst among Sharks with at least 10 games played this season, and his -13.8 expected rating, while exaggerated slightly due to his heavy minutes, is the worst on the club.
That said, he’s been given difficult usage on one of the league’s thinnest blue lines. Ceci averages 18:43 per game just at even strength, leading second-place Mario Ferraro by more than a minute, and is the only Shark averaging more than three minutes per contest on the penalty kill.
All told, he’s putting up similar results to his numbers in a complementary role in Edmonton the past few years while receiving arguably the most challenging minutes of his 12-year NHL career. Whether there’s mutual interest in a commitment past this season remains to be seen. However, it would make sense for the Sharks to retain at least one of Ceci or Jan Rutta – both veteran pending UFAs – as short-term stop gaps until more defense prospects like Sam Dickinson and Shakir Mukhamadullin are ready for top-four minutes.
From Ceci’s point of view, he likely wouldn’t receive more playing time – or money – anywhere else. San Jose projects to have $37.9MM in cap space next season, assuming an upper limit increase to $92MM, with just seven roster spots to fill. He’d likely earn a bit of a premium, at least on his average annual value on a two- or three-year extension, compared to other destinations on the open market.