The Boston Bruins traded Derek Morris to the Phoenix Coyotes on Wednesday, the first publicized move on deadline day.
The Bruins will receive a fourth-round draft pick in the 2011 entry draft, Hockey Night in Canada has learned.
Boston signed Morris to a one-year deal worth $3.3 million US in the summer, but the Bruins have been afflicted by a lack of scoring this season, languishing in eighth place after a first-place finish in the Eastern Conference last season.
Morris, 31, is headed back to the team where he spent more than four seasons. Late last season, the blue-liner was traded from the Coyotes to the New York Rangers before the deadline in 2008-09.
He has also played for Calgary and Colorado in an 851-game NHL career, with 79 goals and 286 assists and 820 penalty minutes.
"It adds a little bit of offence from the blue-line in Phoenix. He's familiar with that situation," said HNIC's Scott Morrison.
The Bruins, meanwhile, are last in the 30-team NHL offensively with 150 goals scored in 61 games.
"Now we wait and see what [Bruins general manager] Peter Chiarelli does with that [room under the salary cap] and clearly needs some scoring help," said Morrison.
"This is going to be interesting," added HNIC's Elliotte Friedman. "They were in on [Ilya] Kovalchuk [who ended up in New Jersey] but decided the price at the end was too high for what they wanted for a rental [player]."
Morrison and Friedman tossed out the name of Ray Whitney, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1 and has been rumoured to be on his way out of Carolina.
"He is building a house in Carolina. His family loves it there. He loves it there. It's an area he wants to retire to," said Friedman of the 37-year-old Hurricanes left-winger.
"I wonder if Boston is a bit different because it's closer to Carolina and maybe his demands would be a little lighter."
Whitney, who has a no-trade clause, reportedly nixed a trade to Los Angeles recently because he couldn't agree on a contract extension with the Kings.
"Maybe he doesn't ask for a two-year extension," said Morrison. "[Maybe] he goes as part of the deal and then decides his fate over the summer, and maybe looks at going back to Carolina if the door is open there."
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