Ceci awarded $4.3M salary

In the end, there was a financial benefit for Cody Ceci for all the long nights he spent as a workhorse on the Ottawa Senators blue line in 2017-18.

An NHL arbitrator awarded Ceci a $4.3 million salary for the upcoming season, based on what was heard in a hearing between the Senators and Ceci’s agents on Wednesday.

The Senators argued for a $3.35 million contract, while Ceci’s camp countered with a demand for $6 million.

For many fans, the $4.3 million compromise is a tough salary pill to swallow, given that many of the numbers beside Ceci’s name — he was a minus-27 and was tied with Erik Karlsson for being on the ice for a league high 121 goals against last season — indicate just how bad the Senators were as a whole.

Offensively, the 24-year-old scored five goals while adding 14 assists. He has 25 goals and 67 assists in 366 career games.

On a team with more highend defensive depth, Ceci likely wouldn’t have averaged 23:20 per game. Given the options, however, coach Guy Boucher continued to give Ceci top defence pairing ice time, typically against opponents’ top lines.

Ceci jumped over the boards for 2,442 shifts last season, second in the NHL behind only Drew Doughty of the Los Angeles Kings.

Barring a contract extension or a trade during the 2018-19 season, Ceci could be back in the same position again next summer, when he will again be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights.