With the offseason winding down, forward Brenden Morrow is one of the more intriguing unrestricted free agents left. No one is going to mistake him for a superstar, but he will chip in offensively while playing a physical style and providing veteran leadership.
So it would be surprising to see the 34-year-old start the 2013-14 season without a contract and it does indeed look like there’s interest in him. Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford has been in contact with Morrow, prompting a possible reunion between Morrow and his former teammate and current head coach, Kirk Muller.
“He knows where we stood as far as our interest in him,” Muller told the News & Observer. “I know he has different opportunities, but he has made it clear Carolina is a spot he has on his radar.”
That might be the case, but even with training camp rapidly approaching, it sounds like nothing is imminent.
“No, not yet,” Morrow told Josh Rimer when asked if he was close to signing. “Still talking to a number of teams and staying patient.
“Teams I’d prefer to play on are having a tough time moving cap space. I’m in no hurry.”
The idea that he might be waiting for a team to make room for him is interesting because it might tie back to Carolina to a degree. Rutherford explained in July that an unnamed player was willing to take a discount on a one-year deal in order to play for them, but the holdup was that Rutherford had to “move a player out before we’re able to add a player.”
At the time, it was believed that Rutherford’s mystery player was Jaromir Jagr and that might have been the case, but Carolina hasn’t moved a player since Rutherford’s statement, so the same potential roadblock might still apply.
Meanwhile, another former teammate of Muller and Morrow’s, forward Radek Dvorak, has agreed to a professional tryout with Carolina in order to attend their training camp.