Cody Ceci’s tenure with the Penguins pretty much went to script.

He arrived needing a course correction to his sagging career, figured things out, played some solid hockey as a steady right-handed defenseman and cashed in as a free agent.

Last week, Ceci joined the Edmonton Oilers by signing a lucrative four-year contract worth $13 million.

There won’t be a touching video tribute for Ceci when he returns to PPG Paints Arena as a visitor on April 26, 2022. But he handled his business in a respectable fashion during his sole season with the Penguins.

Where does he rank among members of the Penguins who spent only one season in Pittsburgh?

There’s been a handful of Hockey Hall of Famers and a few All-Stars who had one tour of duty with the Penguins.

This exercise ranks them through no specific criteria except one: They had to spend a full season with the Penguins, even if it was shortened by the occasional lockout or pandemic. So, no rental players such as Marian Hossa or Jarome Iginla are eligible for inclusion.

(Note: In the interest of good taste, center Michel Briere, who died following his rookie season of 1969-70, was omitted.)

Here are the Penguins’ all-time best “one-timers:”

1. Luc Robitaille, left winger, 1994-95

During the 1994 offseason, the Kings — more specifically Kings great Wayne Gretzky — really wanted to acquire power forward Rick Tocchet. So the Penguins dealt him to the West Coast, but not without a heavy price.

That was Robitaille, who by the time he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009, was the most prolific left winger in NHL history. The hope was Robitaille would mesh with the non-pareil talents of Mario Lemieux, but the Penguins icon sat out the lockout-shortened 1994-95 season for health-related reasons.

Regardless, Robitaille, who had a speaking role in the infamous “Sudden Death” action movie, fared well during his one season with the Penguins. He had 23 goals and 42 points in 46 games that season. In 12 postseason games, Robitaille recorded 11 points, including seven goals. Two of his goals were game-winners, including a crucial score in a 6-5 overtime win against the rival Washington Capitals in Game 5 of an Eastern Conference quarterfinal series. The Penguins entered that game down 3-1 in the series, and that victory spurred them to claim it in seven games.

After the season, general manager Craig Patrick, motivated by the Penguins’ dwindling finances, dealt Robitaille to the deep-pocketed New York Rangers. Part of the return was the next man on this list.

2. Sergei Zubov, defenseman, 1995-96

There are a lot of urban legends about Zubov’s tenure with the Penguins. Specifically, why it was so short.

Zubov was said to have run afoul of Lemieux and his preferences with regards to the power play. But Zubov long ago dismissed that suggestion. The two even had a chummy moment during Zubov’s induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2019.

Regardless of the motivation, the Penguins’ decision to move Zubov to the Dallas Stars for veteran defenseman Kevin Hatcher during the 1996 offseason remains one of the worst trades in franchise history.

Injuries limited Zubov to 66 games in 1995-96, but he put up nearly a point per game with 64 points (11 goals, 55 assists). Blessed with a slick set of skates and a blistering slap shot, Zubov collected half of his points that season on the power play. That season, the Penguins — at the onset of the NHL’s so-called “dead puck era” — set a franchise mark for power-play conversions at 26.0%.

3. Bryan Smolinski, center, 1995-96

“Smoke” was brought to Pittsburgh during that 1995 offseason, motivated by finances. Veteran forwards Kevin Stevens and Shawn McEachern were sent to the Boston Bruins for younger forwards Smolinski and Glen Murray.

Taking on a secondary role to the likes of superstars such as Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr and Ron Francis, Smolinski benefited from the Penguins’ aggressive approach, setting career-highs for assists (40) and points (64) that season while helping the Penguins reach the Eastern Conference final.

After the season, Smolinski, a restricted free agent, held out for a bigger contract than the Penguins were willing to offer (or were capable of offering).

Just before the start of the 1996-97 season, Smolinski’s signing rights were dealt to the New York Islanders.

4. Zigmund Palffy, left winger, 2005-06

The inclusion of Palffy on this list probably will elicit a number of reactions, none of them positive.

Coming out of the 2004-05 lockout, the Penguins, aided by the benefit of a salary cap, splurged on a number of star players in free agency, including Palffy, a slick, skilled All-Star winger.

While the Penguins largely flopped in the standings, Palffy was one of their more productive players. In addition to assisting on the 10,000th goal in franchise history, Palffy, who often lined up next to rookie center Sidney Crosby, put up 42 points (11 goals, 31 assists) in his first 42 games of the season.

The only problem was those were his only 42 games of the season.

Midseason, Palffy abruptly “retired” and left the Penguins. He eventually returned to his native Slovakia to play professionally and even participated in the 2010 Olympics.

Palffy was universally reviled for quitting on the Penguins by fans and critics but in reality, he returned home to deal with a family emergency and to rest his chronically injured shoulder.

Sure, Palffy doesn’t quite meet the “whole season” criteria for this list, but his season was pretty good despite its brevity.

5. Ab McDonald, left winger, 1967-68

Tribune-Review file Forward Ab McDonald served as the Penguins’ first captain in 1967-68.  

The NHL’s decision to expand and double to 12 teams provided a chance for McDonald to extend his career.

Having helped the Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Black Hawks win the Stanley Cup in the late 1950s and early 1960s, McDonald bounced between the NHL and minor leagues during the mid-1960s.

The Penguins claimed the 31-year-old McDonald from the Detroit Red Wings in the 1967 expansion draft and installed him as the first captain in franchise history.

Appearing in all 74 games of the Penguins’ inaugural campaign of 1967-68, McDonald led the team in goals with 22 while putting up 59 points.

After the season, the Penguins, wanting to boost their center depth, dealt McDonald to the St. Louis Blues for Lou Angotti.

6. Ty Conklin, goaltender, 2007-08

Chaz Palla | Tribune-Review Penguins goaltender Ty Conklin makes a save during the Winter Classic in Orchard Park, N.Y., Jan. 1, 2008.  

When starting goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury suffered a high-ankle sprain in December of 2007, Conklin wasn’t the first person they turned to in hopes of replacing him.

Dany Sabourin took over initially but never seemed to nail down the job.

Joining the team as free agent in the 2007 offseason with the intention of serving as the organization’s third goaltender, Conklin largely salvaged the Penguins’ season. By the time he started his first game on Dec. 20, the Penguins were two games over .500 and struggling to maintain a playoff-caliber position in the standings.

Conklin won his first nine starts for the Penguins, including a 2-1 shootout victory in the snow against the Buffalo Sabres in the first Winter Classic at Orchard Park. N.Y. on New Year’s Day.

In all, Conklin played in 33 games that season and posted an 18-8-5 record as well as a 2.51 goals against average, a .923 save percentage and two shutouts.

By the time Fleury recovered and returned to the lineup, Conklin’s stable play helped the Penguins win the Atlantic Division and eventually reach the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in franchise history.

A few weeks after losing to the Red Wings in the Final, Conklin and Hossa went to Detroit as free agents.

7. Charlie Burns, center, 1968-69

A native of Detroit, Burns was one of the relatively few American-born players in the NHL during the so-called “original six” era. In fact, he was the first Detroiter to play for the Red Wings.

The 1967 expansion provided him a greater opportunity to play. A member of the Oakland Seals during that franchise’s inaugural season of 1967-68, Burns, a strong skater and a steady penalty killer, was acquired by the Penguins the following offseason in the intra-league draft.

One of the first players in NHL history to wear a helmet — during his junior career, he suffered a head injury that required the insertion of a metal plate — Burns enjoyed the most prolific season of his NHL career in Pittsburgh. Playing in all 76 games, Burns scored 51 points (13 goals, 38 assists), one short of right-winger Ken Schinkel’s team-leading 52 points.

Burns was on the move again in the 1969 offseason as the Minnesota North Stars claimed him in another intra-league draft.

8. Cody Ceci, defenseman, 2020-21

Struggling in one season with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2019-20, Ceci faced an uncertain future during the 2020 offseason due to the pandemic.

The Penguins took a chance on him, signing him to a one-year contract. Giving him fewer minutes than he typically saw with the Maple Leafs and with the Ottawa Senators, Ceci thrived as a second-pairing defenseman.

Appearing in 53 games, Ceci scored 17 points (four goals, 13 assists), second-most among the team’s defensemen. Most importantly, he brought stability on the right side of the Penguins’ defense and was a staple on the penalty kill.

Last week, Ceci joined the Oilers as a free agent.

9. Doug Brown, right winger, 1993-94

After struggling to stay in the lineup for the unremarkable New Jersey Devils in 1992-93, Brown was without a home for most of the 1993 offseason until the Penguins invited him to training camp in early September.

With Lemieux and Stevens each limited in training camp due to health concerns, Brown took advantage of extra ice time in the preseason and earned a contract by Sept. 28.

While the Penguins won the Northeast Division in 1993-94, they did so with the likes of Lemieux, Stevens and Tocchet sidelined for much of the campaign. Brown took advantage of an elevated role and established a career-best 55 points (18 goals, 37 assists) in 77 games while playing with his brother, defenseman Greg Brown.

After the 1994-95 lockout ended, Brown was claimed by the Red Wings in a waiver draft.

10. Steve Sullivan, left winger, 2011-12

When he signed with the Penguins in July of 2011, Sullivan was basically a consolation prize.

The Penguins, for weeks, had been courting Jaromir Jagr for a potential reunion, only to be spurned as he balked at their contract offer. With Jagr ultimately joining the rival Philadelphia Flyers, Penguins general manager Ray Shero signed Sullivan, a player he was familiar with from their days as members of the Nashville Predators.

A waterbug of a skater, Sullivan primarily played on the third line but also manned the point on the top power-play unit. Appearing in 79 of 82 games, Sullivan put up a solid 48 points (17 goals, 31 assists).

After the season, Sullivan joined the Phoenix Coyotes as an unrestricted free agent.

Honorable mention: Lou Angotti, center (1968-69); Tim Horton, defenseman (1971-72); Bob Leiter, center (1971-72); Miroslav Satan, winger (2008-09); Dave Tippett, center (1992-93)

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