The Poni Express is riding west, baggage and all.

Former Toronto Maple Leaf Alexei Ponikarovsky, an unrestricted free agent who has never scored more than 23 goals in a season and has carried the "underachiever" label for much of his career, agreed to terms on a one-year, $3 million contract with the Los Angeles Kings Tuesday. The deal also includes a $200,000 signing bonus.

Ponikarovsky, who was dealt to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Luca Caputi and Martin Skoula at the trade deadline last season, combined for 21 goals and 29 assists in 77 games split between the two teams. The 30-year-old Ukrainian has scored 20 or more goals four times in six full NHL seasons but never really lived up to expectations in Toronto.