The LA Kings have signed defensemen Cody Ceci to a four-year contract with an average annual value (AAV) of $4,500,000 through the 2028-29 season.
Ceci, 31, joins the Kings after splitting the 2024-25 campaign with the San Jose Sharks and Dallas Stars, recording 24 points (4-20=24) with 24 penalty minutes (PIM) and 21:13 minutes of time-on-ice (TOI) in 85 combined regular-season games. His 85 games played are the second-most played in a single season in NHL history behind Bob Kudelski (86 GP in 1993-94) and Jimmy Carson (86 GP in 1992-93). After his debut with Dallas on Feb. 2, 2025, the 6-3, 210-pound blueliner established a team-best plus-15 rating in the final 31 regular-season games with the club and added three assists (0-3=3) in 18 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
Originally selected 15th overall by the Ottawa Senators in the 2012 NHL Draft, Ceci is a veteran of 871 career NHL regular-season games over parts of 12 seasons between the Senators (2013-19), Toronto Maple Leafs (2019-20), Pittsburgh Penguins (2020-21), Edmonton Oilers (2021-24), San Jose Sharks (2024-25) and Dallas Stars (2024-25). In 871 career games, Ceci has collected 52 goals and 235 points (52-183=235) with 194 PIM and a cumulative 20:42 minutes of TOI. His best individual campaign came in the 2021-22 season where he set netted five goals while setting career-marks in assists (23) and points (28). Ceci has added 18 assists and 22 points (4-18=22) in 106 career Stanley Cup Playoff games, the 14th-most postseason games played by an active blueliner.
Internationally, the Ottawa, Ontario native has represented Canada at two International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) tournaments, including the 2016 IIHF Men’s World Championship, where he won gold, and the 2011 IIHF Men’s Under-18 World Junior Championship.
