Yesterday afternoon, Buffalo GM Darcy Regier informed Daniel Paille that he'd been traded to the Bruins for two picks.

"Little bit of a shock," said Paille. "But excited at the same time. I've been presented with a new opportunity and a new team. I get to meet the new guys, and I'm really looking forward to that."

Paille had appeared in only two games this season. He had been passed on the depth chart by younger players such as Clarke MacArthur and Tim Kennedy.

"I wasn't too sure if it were to happen or not," Paille said of a trade. "I never asked for one. It was just to a point where I wasn't playing in Buffalo. Buffalo thought I deserved to play, whether it was with them or somebody else. They found somebody else, so I'm more than happy to be here."

Assistant GM Jim Benning was Buffalo's director of amateur scouting when the Sabres drafted Paille with the 20th overall pick in 2002. The Sabres drafted Keith Ballard with the No. 10 pick, then traded Mike Pandolfo and a second-round pick to Columbus for the 20th selection. The Sabres used that pick to nab Paille.

"He's a good two-way player," Benning said. "He plays both ends of the ice. He's a real good skater. Physically, he's strong. When he hits, he hits three people. The reason why we drafted him in Buffalo is the reason we traded for him now -- because of his speed, his ability to get in on the forecheck, hit, recover pucks. He's a good, defensive, two-way player."

In 2004-05, Paille played for Bruins assistant coach Doug Houda in Rochester.