The Philadelphia Flyers last week dealt away two centers in Jeff Carter and Mike Richards, and began this week trading another, shipping Darroll Powe to the Minnesota Wild for a third round pick in 2013.

Powe, 25, has spent his first three NHL seasons with the Flyers in a checking line role, particularly on the penalty kill. He's currently a restricted free agent coming off a one-year, $725K contract.

The Flyers probably preferred to re-sign him, but they've been doing a significant shake-up of late to accommodate not only the contract of recently signed goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov, but also those of Wayne Simmonds and Jakub Voracek, who are also restricted free agents acquired in the Carter and Richards deals.

It's also believed they intend to re-sign UFA winger Ville Leino, plus RFAs Dan Carcillo and Andreas Nodl, which would've made Powe the odd man out.

The Vancouver Canucks re-signed one of their key players today, inking defenseman Kevin Bieksa to a five-year deal worth $4.6 million per season, with a "no-trade" clause.

Bieksa,30, was eligible for unrestricted free agency on July 1st, but had suggested shortly after the 2011 Stanley Cup Final he'd be willing to return to the Canucks for less than market value. 

He was true to his word, as this deal represents a modest raise above the $3.75 million per season average salary he earned on his previous deal, and given his performance this season, especially during the Canucks run to the Final, he could've earned considerably more.

Bieksa however was willing to forego the richest of free agency to stick with the only NHL team he's ever played for, one that will still be considered a Stanley Cup contender next season, especially with himself in the lineup.

His offensive numbers during the regular season have declined from the highs of 43 and 42 he had prior to 2009-10, but his defensive game has significantly improved. In 66 games this season, Bieksa had 22 points and a plus-minus of +32, the best on the Canucks and tied for second-best overall in the league.

Interestingly, Bieksa entered this past season with some critics suggesting the Canucks should trade him or let him walk via free agency, but his emergence as the team's best all-round blueliner made him too valuable to lose.

With Bieksa now under contract, the focus of the Canucks management shifts to blueliners Christian Ehrhoff and Sami Salo. Both have expressed their wish to remain with the Canucks, and Salo has acknowledged he'll have to accept a pay cut to stay. It remains to be seen what Ehrhoff's plans will be.

The Tampa Bay Lightning added a veteran defenseman to the blueline during the second day of the 2011 NHL entry draft, acquiring Bruno Gervais from the New York Islander for future considerations.

Gervais, 26, played 53 games with the Islanders last season, with six points and a plus-minus of -14. He is slated to become a restricted free agent on July 1st. 

Shortly after the Calgary Flames announced at the start of the second round of the NHL entry draft they'd dealt away Robyn Regehr and Ales Kotalik, the club announced the re-signing of winger Alex Tanguay to a five year, $17.5 million contract extension.

Tanguay,31, was eligible to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st. Moving Regehr and Kotalik's combined $7 million-plus in salaries free up the cap space for the Flames to re-up Tanguay to a $3.5 million per season annual cap hit.

After two miserable seasons in Montreal and Tampa Bay, Tanguay last summer signed a one-year, $1.7 million contract with the Flames, and had a bounce-back performance, with 69 points in 79 games, rekindling the offensive chemistry he had with Flames captain Jarome Iginla during his previous go-around with the Flames from 2006-2008.

While he certainly earned his raise, the problem could be with the length of the deal, as he'll be 36 when it expires, so there's a good possibility his skills will be in decline by that point. 

For the time being, it's an affordable re-signing of a key offensive forward who meshed well with the Flames franchise player. 

After three seasons of waiting for winger Nikita Filatov to blossom into a scoring star, the Columbus Blue Jackets ran out of patience, shipping Filatov to the Ottawa Senators during the second round of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft in exchange for the Senators third round pick, 66th overall. 

Filatov, 21, was one of the highly-touted picks in the 2008 NHL entry draft, a slick, speedy offensive winger whom the Blue Jackets took sixth overall in the 2008 entry draft. 

Sadly, he struggled to adjust to the North American game, especially the emphasis on defensive play. He played only 44 games over three seasons for the Jackets, bouncing between them, their farm team, and one season on loan to his former KHL team. 

He should get a good opportunity to prove his worth on a Senators team which has begun rebuilding in earnest this year. Given his youth and promise, there's still time for Filatov to prove himself a worth NHL player, but it's up to him to take advantage of this opportunity with a new team.

TSN.ca reports Calgary Flames defenseman Robyn Regehr has agreed to waive his "no-movement" clause to accept a trade to the Buffalo Sabres.

The details of the trade are expected to be finalized later today, and it's also expected to involve Flames forward Ales Kotalik joining Regehr. It's a move which, depending on the return from the Sabres, will clear over $7 million in cap space from the Flames books, likely to create room for other acquisitions and/or re-signings.

The trade was officially announced at the start of the second round of the 2011 NHL Entry draft, with Regehr, Kotalik and the Flames second round pick in 2012 going to Buffalo for Chris Butler and Paul Byron.

Regehr's a respected, stay-at-home physical defenseman whose experience should prove beneficial to a Sabres blueline stocked with young talent. 

It's a homecoming for Kotalik, who began his NHL career with the Sabres and had his best seasons there, but his stock has plummented since he was dealt to Edmonton back in 2008-09, and he's since bounced to the Rangers and Flames, where he spent most of last season banished to the minors to free up cap space.

It remains to be seen where Kotalik fits into the Sabres system now. It's possible he could be bought out, but if not, he only has one more season remaining on his contract, so if he doesn't work out, they won't be saddled with him for long.

The Flames obviously didn't want to take back much salary in return, as Byron's is worth $550K at the NHL level, while Butler is a restricted free agent who made $850K last season.  

Butler has three NHL seasons under his belt and will fit seamlessly into the Flames defense, while the 22-year-old Byron has played only 8 NHL games and could be headed to the minors next season.

The Flames got younger plus clear substantial cap space, which could either be used to re-sign pending UFA winger Alex Tanguay, or replace him via free agency or trade. 

The Chicago Blackhawks made their second trade of the first round, and it was a big one, shipping out defenseman Brian Campbell to the Florida Panthers in exchange for forward Rostislav Olesz.

As of this posting, the final details were being ironed out as the first round of the entry draft drew to a close, but for all intent and purpose, it's considered a done deal. 

It's a major move for the Blackhawks, as it clears over $7.142 million per season for the next five years off their books. The deal also required Campbell to agree to waive his “no-movement” clause, and it wasn't just the opportunity to play in the warm Florida sunshine which appealed to Campbell. 

He's going to be reunited with Dale Tallon, the general manager of the Panthers, who as Blackhawks GM signed Campbell to his huge contract, bringing him to Chicago and giving him the opportunity to win a Stanley Cup. 

With Tallon now attempting to rebuild a moribund Panthers team, and in need of an experience puck-moving defenseman after having dealt away Bryan McCabe this past February, he obviously feels Campbell is just the guy he needs to bolster his defense. 

Tallon has also done his former team a huge favor, taking over that huge contract, which since last summer was blamed as part of the reason the Blackhawks had to make so many cost-cutting trades.

The move also helps the Panthers, who were sitting over $30 million under the cap minimum of $48.3 million, the opportunity to eat up a significant chunk of that available space, making it easier to become cap compliant before next season. 

Olesz makes the second player from the Panthers the Blackhawks have acquired this year, having dealt for Michael Frolik in February. 

He was long considered a promising offensive player for the Panthers, but he never blossomed into the scorer they'd hoped, as he struggled through injuries. Last season he played only 44 games, with 6 goals and 17 points, missing half the season to a broken finger and a knee injury. 

Olesz has three more seasons at $3.145 million remaining on his contract, so this has also become a swap of bad contracts between two teams, though the Blackhawks will hope Olesz will have better luck finding his game on a deeper club than those he played for in Florida.  

The Chicago Blackhawks continue to feel the squeeze of limited cap space once again forcing them to trade another player, as versatile winger Troy Brouwer was dealt to the Washington Capitals in exchange for their first round pick (26^th overall) in this year's entry draft.

Brouwer, 25, had 17 goals and 36 points in 79 games with the Blackhawks last season, including 7 power-play goals. In 2009-10, he had career bests in goals (22) and points (40).

He was also a restricted free agent, and while the Blackhawks may have preferred to re-sign him, they're obviously putting a greater onus on re-signing late season acquisitions Michael Frolik and Chris Campoli.

The acquisition of Brouwer by the Capitals likely means UFA forward Matt Bradley won't be re-signed by the club.

A first round pick, even one at 26^th overall, seems a bit steep for a player like Brouwer, but the Capitals are well stocked within their system and can afford to make this move for an energetic forward with a decent scoring touch and a Stanley Cup ring on his resume.

The first major deal of the entry draft saw the Minnesota Wild give up a key defenseman in order to land a scoring winger. 

Blueliner Brent Burns, along with a second round pick, was dealt to the San Jose Sharks for right wing Devin Setoguchi, prospect forward Charlie Coyle, and the Sharks first round pick (28^th overall). 

Setoguchi, 24, had only the day before the draft signed a three-year, $9 million contract extension with the Sharks, so this move does come as a surprise, as “sign-and-trade” deals aren't common.

He comes with plenty of upside, having a 31 goal, 65 point season in 2008-09, although he's struggled to return to that form since then. He'll be given ample opportunity to do so with the Wild, likely on their first line with center Mikko Koivu. 

Coyle could also prove to be a solid addition for Minnesota in the future. He was selected 28^th overall in last year's draft by the Sharks. 

This move also resolves the Sharks need for a skilled puck-moving defenseman to help Dan Boyle carry the load. 

In 78 games with the Wild last season, Burns had 17 goals and 46 points, both of which were career highs for the 26 year old blueliner, who is starting to come into his own as an elite NHL defenseman. 

What also likely factored in to the Wild's decision to move him is his contract status for next year, as he'll be eligible for UFA status next July. Don't be surprised if the Sharks push to re-sign him this summer.  

Ryan Smyth is returning to where his NHL career began, and where he had his best seasons.

Less than a week after requesting a trade for family reasons, the Los Angeles Kings have traded Smyth back to the Edmonton Oilers, in exchange for forward Gilbert Brule and a fourth round draft pick.

Smyth, 35, scored 23 goals and 47 points for the Kings last season, and has one season remaining on his current contract, paying him $4.5 million, but with a cap hit of $6.25 million. The Oilers will be able to easily afford that, as it'll help them get up over the minimum cap level of $48.3 million for next season.

He comes back to the city where he spent the first ten and a half years of his NHL career, earning the love of Oilers fans for his energetic, two way style. He was however dealt away mid-way through the 2006-07 season to the NY Islanders, which was memorable for Smyth's tearful farewell press conference.

Smyth played only 18 regular season games with the Islanders, signing with the Colorado Avalanche as an unrestricted free agent, but played only two seasons there, agreeing to waive his movement clause to accept a trade to the LA Kings, where he spent the past two seasons.

Oilers fans are undoubtedly overjoyed at Smyth's return and he'll undoubtedly get a loud welcome in his first home game back with the Oilers next season.

That being said, however, age and his gritty style of play has slowly but surely been catching up to Smyth, as his points totals have been in a slow decline since netting 68 points in 2006-07.

Given the young talent on the Oilers, he'll be able to play an invaluable role as leader and mentor, and won't have to face the burden of carrying the captaincy or playing the same kind of minutes he used to.

As for Brule, he joins his third team in seven seasons since making his NHL debut in 2005-06 with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Injuries and inconsistency have hampered the development of the 24-year-old right winger, but he'll have a chance to get his career on track with the Kings, as he'll likely be looked at to fill the spot on right wing vacated by Wayne Simmonds, who was dealt to Philadelphia in the Mike Richards trade.

**UPDATE** The trade was delayed for two days as the Kings had concerns over Brule's injury history. The trade has since been revised, with young center Colin Fraser instead of Brule going to the Kings. The draft pick was also changed, to a seventh rounder in 2012.