"General manager Stan Bowman made a move Friday night to strengthen the Blackhawks up the middle when he acquired veteran center Brendan Morrison in a trade with the Flames.

The Hawks sent minor-league defenseman Brian Connelly in exchange for Morrison, who has appeared in 923 career NHL games over parts of 14 seasons and could be the answer to the void at second-line center.

"When you can bring a player of Brendan's caliber into your group, and you didn't have to really tear your team apart, is important for us," Bowman said. "(Morrison) having the experience and having the ability to play with skilled players gives us a lot of options. He has been a point producer in the past and he also has shown versatility recently to be able to play different roles on a team."

Morrison, 36, had four goals and seven assists in 28 games with the Flames and said he is fully recovered from a knee injury that sidelined earlier in the season.

He scored his 200th career goal Jan. 1 against the Predators and his 600th career point on Dec. 29, 2011 against the Devils.

"This is a tremendous opportunity to come to a team with as good a chance as anybody to compete for the Stanley Cup," Morrison said. "I'm going to try to be a leader where I can (and) be helpful wherever … they want to play me.""