NHL wheels, deals before free agency

There were a few whopper trades Friday night and early Saturday, as NHL teams begin to position themselves for free agency, which kicks off Friday. Here are some of the teams that made big splashes on draft weekend:

Flyers. Even before the first pick was made, Philadelphia set the standard for roster shake-ups, sending talented center Jeff Carter to the Blue Jackets for young winger Jakub Voracek, the No. 8 overall pick on Friday and a third-rounder Saturday just minutes before sending captain Mike Richards to the Kings for gritty winger Wayne Simmonds, prospect Brayden Schenn and a draft pick.

Former Islanders coach Peter Laviolette wanted to change the atmosphere in the Flyers' locker room, which reportedly was lacking in leadership. The Flyers did that, big-time, and followed up the trades by signing goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov to a nine-year, $51-million deal.

Flyers chairman Ed Snider told CSNPhilly.com that his team was done making major moves, signaling they may not be in the hunt for free-agent Brad Richards.

Sharks. San Jose fell short of reaching its first Stanley Cup Finals yet again, and general manager Doug Wilson made a major move to rectify that, acquiring rangy defenseman Brent Burns from the Wild for scoring winger Devin Setoguchi, a prospect and the Sharks' 28th overall pick. Burns is a great pickup for San Jose, which has enough talent up front to afford to send out Setoguchi.

Blackhawks. Chicago has been salary cap-strapped for two years now and, after a disappointing season, made moves to remedy that situation by dealing restricted free-agent wing Troy Brouwer to the Caps for the 26th overall pick and sending defenseman Brian Campbell and his $7.14-million annual cap hit to the Panthers for wing Rostislav Olesz. Chicago is now in a position to sign Patrick Sharp to an extension and keep its talented core in place for several seasons.

Oilers. Two straight No. 1 picks ought to change something, right? Adding Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to last year's No. 1, Taylor Hall, should provide Tom Renney's club with some more excitement, if not a ton more points in the standings in the difficult Western Conference.

SEE PHOTOSHit or miss: Islanders first-round draft picks

Panthers. They simply had to make moves, given they entered the draft weekend $31 million below the 2011-12 salary-cap floor. Campbell eats up some space, but he's not a true first-pair defenseman; Jonathan Huberdeau is a fine pick at No. 3, but he's coming to a bare cupboard of a team. They reportedly are having trouble signing last year's No. 3 pick, Erik Gudbranson, which is just adding to the woes of a team that will have trouble competing under new coach Kevin Dineen.

As for the locals:

Islanders. Ryan Strome will get time to develop and the Islanders have time to target a few free agents once Friday rolls around. Forward depth, particularly at center, is a priority, as is another minutes-eating defenseman to perhaps team with Mark Streit.

Rangers. Evgeny Grachev wasn't considered a top-level prospect, despite getting a couple of looks at the NHL level. The Rangers did benefit from the Flyers' wheeling and dealing, since it likely takes the Kings and Philly out of the running for Brad Richards; it would seem that the Leafs will bid the most, having cap and roster space, and the Rangers will bank on Richards wanting to be part of a team closer to contention than the still-rebuilding Leafs.

SEE PHOTOSHit or miss: Rangers first-round picks since 1991

O'Gara goes to Bruins

Long Island's Rob O'Gara, a 6-2 defenseman out of Massapequa and Milton (Mass.) Academy, was the last pick of the fifth round by the Stanley Cup champs. O'Gara is headed to Yale.