Ottawa Senators Patiently Wait on Cody Ceci Contract

The Ottawa Senators really had a couple major moves they had to make this offseason, and one of the most important ones has yet to happen.

Cody Ceci still remains unsigned, and it appears like the two sides haven’t made much progress since the situation was last examined.

It has become a staring contest, and it’ll be interesting to see which side ends up blinking first. The Senators have made it abundantly clear that Ceci will be on their roster come October 12th.

“He’ll play for us October 12th. That’s my line,” said Pierre Dorion. “He’s here. He’s working out. It’s all good. It’s just taking longer. That’s all.”

Dorion is trying to be as reassuring as he possibly can, but it’s admittedly a strange tactic. From an organizational perspective, he’s forfeiting a lot of leverage willingly.

First of all, he’s drawing a concrete line in the sand off in the distance. No line existed until he drew it, meaning that he’s now holding a theoretical gun to his own head that nobody else was originally pointing at him.

It’s putting unnecessary pressure on himself by raising the expectation of when this deal should get done by.

Had he originally said something like he no idea what’s going to happen and that it’s largely up to Cody Ceci, suddenly it puts pressure on the player and his agent to concede more in the negotiation stage.

Ceci is in a very advantageous spot right now. Theoretically, all he has to do is now wait out Dorion until October 12th, and suddenly Dorion is the one who looks like the bad guy in this situation if a deal isn’t done by then.

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That’s the problem with being the one to draw a line in the sand; you bind yourself to a time frame or regulation that was previously undefined.

Of course, the counter argument is that October 12th was the unspoken deadline from the beginning, because that’s when the regular season starts.

No player wants to miss valuable regular season time, and no organization wants to be without a key player.

It’s like playing a game of Chicken, but often times the side that shows the most fear of losing is the one that eventually concedes.

You aren’t seeing Ceci’s agent making claims indicating when a deal is going to get done by, because it weakens his negotiation stance.

In a lot of ways, it’s easier for an agent representing one player than a general manager essentially representing an entire organization because the general manager has far more behind him to lose.

Ceci’s value in terms of talent isn’t going to go down just because he sits out games. There’s at least 1 out of the 29 other teams right now that would willingly give Ceci the contract he’s seeking.

If Ceci sits out games, the Senators’ defensive depth severely weakens, and the team will end up getting hurt more than Ceci when the focus narrows to on-ice status.

However, the one trump card that the team has over Ceci is that they’re the ones signing his paycheck. Public opinion on the issue isn’t going to matter if Ceci starts needing money.

A restricted free agent is ineligible to play for the remainder of the season if not signed by December 1.

That provision shifts a lot of power away from the players, because nobody wants to essentially forfeit a whole season of earnings.

When holdouts do occur into the season, leverage is extremely fluid, usually depending on how the team is faring.

Ceci’s stance is strengthened if the Senators play poorly without him, but if they’re succeeding on the ice despite his absence, his stance would be severely weakened.

That risky proposition combined with the disappointment of not being out on the ice means that this stalemate will likely end by October 12th.

However, Dorion is setting himself up to look like the bad guy if the gridlock isn’t broken by October 12th.

Failing to deliver on a promise like that is a sound byte that can always be used against him, and it didn’t have to be that way.

I’m really rooting for Ceci to get a long term deal, not only because I think he’s a talented defenseman right now, but that he’s only going to get better.

The Senators can pay him for what he has already done, and as he remains under control of the team, his value will grow beyond what he originally signed for.

In a few seasons, the Senators could very well have a 40-45 point defenseman for a bargain. Yes it’s a gamble, like any player projection is, but it seems like a prudent one to make based on what Ceci has already been able to do.

Next: Ottawa Senators Still Working on Securing an Outdoor Game

Both sides need each other to some extent, and I’m really hoping this deal gets done sooner rather than later.

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