Petersson, 23, was a fourth-round pick (109th overall) in the 2008 NHL Draft. The 5-foot-9 right winger had 17 goals and 23 assists (40 points) in 47 games with Binghamton this season.
Mitchell made it known that he was not happy in Minnesota and wanted out. A way to look at this trade is Mitchell for McCormick and the two second round picks for Moulson. Mitchell will come in and replace McCormick, however Mitchell is signed through next season when McCormick is not.
Mitchell had made it known that he was unhappy in Minnesota, so the Sabres off-load McCormick who is in the final year of his deal to replace Mitchell. McCormick is not fantasy relevant, he will skate on the Wild's fourth line. He has one goal and four assists in 29 games this season.
Moulson is on his way to his third team this season. He has a total of 17 goals and 21 assists (38 points) in 55 games between the Sabres and Islanders. This is the second straight season that the Wild have added an impact winger at the deadline by making a trade with the Sabres (J. Pominville in 2013). Moulson will likely find himself in the top-6 with Mikael Granlund or Mikko Koivu as his pivot.
The Penguins were shopping for a winger that can replace Pascal Dupuis, who was lost for the season. with a knee injury. Stempniak is expected to replace Brian Gibbons on Sidney Crosby's wing, which will obviously make him an intriguing pick-up. Stempniak has eight goals and 15 assists in 52 games this season. Despite likely landing on a line with Crosby, he has not scored 20 goals since 2006-07. He makes for a speculative add in 12-team leagues.
Jarnkrok and the third-round pick is what the Predators were after, Eaves was simply to open up room on the Red Wings roster. Jarnkrok, 22, was a second-round pick (51st overall) in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. Jarnkrok is in his first full season with the Griffins (AHL) and has 13 goals and 23 assists (36 points) in 57 games. There are concerns surrounding Jarnkrok wanting to go back and play in Sweden, but the Predators will do everything they can so that does not happen.
Eaves had served as a healthy scratch in the last four games with Detroit and will now fight for playing time in Nashville. He has two goals and three assists in 25 games with the Red Wings this season. The Red Wings moved Eaves to open up a spot on the roster for Legwand's arrival.
The Red Wings severly needed help at centre with the injuries to Datsyuk, Helm and Weiss. Legwand is from Detroit and played his minor hockey in nearby Plymouth. He has spent his entire career with the Predators and has been a solid scorer. This season he has 10 goals and 30 assists (40 points) in 62 games. Legwand has averaged 51 points over 82 games in the last four seasons and will help the Red Wings now and when they are healthy, he is an even better addition.
Berra has been acquired by the Avalanche as insurance for an aging J.S Giguere. Giguere was battling a back issue earlier in the season, so Berra comes to the Avalanche as a back-up plan. Both Berra and Giguere are set to become a free agents at the end of the season, so I'm sure by trading a second-round pick that the Avalanche have plans to re-sign Berra as their back-up for the future. Berra was 9-17-2 with a 2.95 GAA and .897 SV% with the Flames this season, but should find it easier playing behind the Avalanche.
Klesla was traded to the Capitals in the Martin Erat deal on Tuesday. He has been bounced from the NHL to the AHL a couple of time this season. The 31-year-old has one goal and three assists in 25 NHL games this season.
Neuvirth was 4-6-2 with a 2.82 GAA and .914 SV% with the Capitals this season. The 25-year-old is a good goaltender who will push for starts behind Jhonas Enroth. A healthy goaltending battle is a good thing, especially on a young, below average. team.
Halak has gone 24-9-4 with a 2.23 GAA and .917 SV% with the Blues this season. He will go to the Capitals, a team he single handedly shutdown the Capitals in the 2010 playoffs. He will battle with Braden Holtby for crease time.
Collberg was a second-round pick (33rd overall) in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. He has three goals and six assists with Frolunda HC in Sweden. The picks will swap hands if the Canadiens make the playoffs.
The Islanders gave up Matt Moulson, a first and a second round pick for Vanek and then only move him for a second and prospect. This has to be considered a loss for the Islanders and a huge win for the Habs. They sit 20th in the NHL in scoring but now add Vanek who has 21 goals in 60 games this season. He is a three-time 40-goal scorer and has had 25-plus goals in every full season in his career. The picks will swap hands if the Canadiens make the playoffs.
Diaz was acquired from the Canadiens for Dale Weise on February 3, but has now been shipped to the Rangers for a future draft pick. With Vancouver, Diaz had one goal and one assist in six games. He has a total of one goal and 12 assists in 52 games this season.
Meszaros has shuffled in and out of the lineup all season, but had recently been one of the Flyers best defensemen. Mez has five goals and 12 assists (17 points) in 38 games and goes to a team with a bunch of injuries on the blueline.
The Panthers send Thomas who is set to be free agent in the summer to the Stars for Ellis who is signed through next season for $900,000. Ellis will go from Kari Lehtonen's backup to Roberto Luongo's backup. In Dallas he was 5-6-0 with a 3.04 GAA and .900 SV%.
The Stars acquire the veteran netminder to push Kari Lehtonen for starts. Lehtonen is a skilled goaltender, but has been in consistent throughout his career. Adding Thomas gives the Stars two strong goaltending options as they push for a playoff spot. Thomas was 16-20-3 with a 2.87 GAA and .909 SV% with the Panthers.
Schultz, 31, is a defensive defenseman who addresses the need for a D-man following the injuries to Ryan Murray and Fedor Tyutin on the Blue Jackets bllueline. Schultz averaged 16:58 TOI while posting no goals and four assists with a minus-11 rating in 60 games with the Oilers.
Loktionov, 23, is a former Los Angeles King who was in his second season with the Devils. He had recorded four goals and eight assists (12 points) in 48 games with New Jersey this season.
NHL trades are decided between two or more team general managers. The front office’s job is building a winning team. Building a winning team means discussing trades with other general managers across the league.
During the NHL regular season, players can be traded up until the trade deadline. The deadline is the official cutoff point for when teams can no longer make moves between each other. Players can also be traded throughout the offseason.
Teams trade players in hockey for a variety of reasons, but generally, it is done to find success, whether that is in the short term or long term. Teams may trade their top players in search of draft picks if they are undergoing a rebuild, whereas contending teams may look to acquire talent to boost their playoff chances.
Trades are a common occurrence throughout the NHL and happen often. Some years feature less trades than others, it all depends on each teams needs and the availability of attractive talent.