When it comes to the future of the Ottawa Senators, much of the attention has been on pending unrestricted free agents Matt Duchene and Mark Stone. But the team is also reportedly getting calls about a lower-profile player.

Other NHL clubs have contacted the Senators to see if they'd consider trading defenseman Cody Ceci, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie.

"Unlike Stone and Duchene, he is not (a pending) unrestricted free agent. He's a (pending) restricted free agent. And yet, there are teams out there that have been calling Ottawa to see if there's any interest in moving him," McKenzie said of Ceci on Thursday's edition of "Insider Trading."

"That's also a decision-making process that the Senators have to go through between now and the deadline," McKenzie added.

Ceci signed a one-year, $4.3-million deal to stay with the Senators in August.

The 25-year-old ranks second on the club in ice-time this season, averaging 22:45 per game. He has 13 points in 43 games.

Ceci is in his sixth season with Ottawa after the Senators drafted him 15th overall in 2012.

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One new player up front may not be enough for the Carolina Hurricanes.

The club still hopes to land another top-six forward before the Feb. 25 trade deadline in exchange for a defenseman, TSN's Pierre LeBrun reports.

Carolina boasts a wealth of solid blue-liners, including Jaccob Slavin, Brett Pesce, Calvin de Haan, Justin Faulk, and Dougie Hamilton.

The Hurricanes acquired winger Nino Niederreiter from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for center Victor Rask on Thursday.

Niederreiter joins a forward group that includes Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen, Andrei Svechnikov, and Micheal Ferland, who's reportedly garnering interest from several other clubs.

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The Minnesota Wild traded winger Nino Niederreiter to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for center Victor Rask, the team announced Thursday.

Niederreiter, 26, is in the midst of a down season with nine goals and 14 assists in 46 games. The former fifth overall pick averaged 23 goals per 82 games over the last four campaigns.

Rask, 25, began the season on injured reserve after he accidentally sliced his hand in a kitchen accident this past summer. He hasn't quite found his footing since returning to the lineup, picking up a goal and five helpers in 26 games while averaging a career-low 12:02 minutes of ice time.

Both players will become unrestricted free agents following the 2021-22 season. Rask's contract has an average annual value of $4 million, while Niederreiter's cap hit is $5.25 million.

The Hurricanes will look for Niederreiter to add scoring punch to a team that sits 27th in goals per game despite ranking first in shots on goal.

Meanwhile, Rask could fill a future need at center for the Wild. Eric Staal, 34, is an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season and 35-year-old Mikko Koivu's contract expires after next year.

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Fans of best-on-best international hockey aren't the only ones saddened by Wednesday's news that there will be no World Cup of Hockey in 2020.

Toronto Maple Leafs superstar Auston Matthews admitted he was "pretty bummed" upon learning of the news, he told reporters Thursday, via TSN.

Matthews was a member of the ever-exciting Team North America during the 2016 World Cup, which consisted of a group of players from Canada and the United States age 23-and-under.

Since the tournament preceded Matthews' rookie campaign, it marked the first chance for Maple Leafs fans to see their prized No. 1 pick live, as the event took place in Toronto. Matthews didn't disappoint, scoring twice and adding an assist in three games while playing on a line with Connor McDavid.

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The Los Angeles Kings won't give up Jake Muzzin for cheap.

The team is seeking a first-round pick and a prospect in exchange for Muzzin, according to The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun.

LeBrun notes it's not certain the Kings will deal Muzzin ahead of the Feb. 25 trade deadline, but they are listening to potential offers.

The 29-year-old is having a solid season with 20 points in 47 games, second among the club's defenders behind Drew Doughty. He leads all Kings blue-liners with a 50.96 Corsi For rating and is first on the team in both hits and blocked shots.

Muzzin has one year remaining on his contract after this season and carries a $4-million cap hit.

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The Detroit Red Wings have reportedly put a high price tag on Gustav Nyquist and Jimmy Howard.

The club is seeking a first-round pick for each player, a source told MLive.com's Ansar Khan.

For Howard, it seems his price tag has remained consistent over the last month. Back in mid-December, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported the Red Wings were asking for a first-round selection for the veteran netminder.

According to Khan, the team doesn't expect to get that return for either player and will look to re-sign Nyquist and Howard as a result. Both will become unrestricted free agents on July 1.

To each player's credit, they have performed well on a team that sits just two points out of last place in the Eastern Conference. Nyquist ranks second on the team with 40 points in 48 games. Meanwhile, Howard has gone 13-12-5 with a 2.71 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage over 32 games while earning an All-Star Game nod.

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The Anaheim Ducks have acquired center Derek Grant from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for center Joseph Blandisi, the team announced early Thursday morning.

Grant has appeared in 25 games with the Penguins this season, posting five points and a plus-3 rating over that span. Blandisi has spent the majority of the last two seasons in the AHL with the San Diego Gulls, scoring 13 goals with 28 helpers in 55 games at that level.

The move added to a busy night for the Ducks, as the club dealt Luke Schenn and a seventh-round pick to the Vancouver Canucks for Michael Del Zotto earlier on.

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The Vancouver Canucks traded defenseman Michael Del Zotto to the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday in exchange for Luke Schenn and a 2020 seventh-round pick, the teams announced.

Del Zotto, 28, has appeared in just 23 games for the Canucks this season, recording one goal and three assists.

Schenn, meanwhile, has spent the majority of his 2018-19 campaign with the AHL's San Diego Gulls, where the 29-year-old has chipped in 10 points.

The deal marks the Ducks' second trade of the day, as they previously shipped forward Pontus Aberg to the Minnesota Wild for Justin Kloos.

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