Steve Staios shook up his roster core ahead of the NHL trade deadline.

The Ottawa Senators general manager acquired Dylan Cozens from the Buffalo Sabres for fellow centre Josh Norris in a blockbuster move Friday.

Ottawa also shipped defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker out of town in the swap that saw the Senators gain blue liner Dennis Gilbert and a second-round pick at the 2026 NHL draft.

Cozens, a 24-year-old carrying a salary cap hit of $7.1 million US through 2029-30, has 11 goals and 20 assists for 31 points across 61 games this season.

Ottawa captain Brady Tkachuk had to hold back his tears after the Senators made a big splash before the NHL trade deadline since Norris is a longtime friend.

"It's pretty tough," an emotional Tkachuk said moments after the trade, which comes amid Ottawa's push to end its seven-season playoff drought. "It sucks, losing a guy like that. Obviously everybody knows how much he means to me."

The six-foot-three, 207-pound Whitehorse native picked seventh overall in 2019 has registered 77 goals and 120 assists for 197 points in 341 career regular-season games.

Norris, meanwhile, put up 20 goals and 13 assists in 53 games with Ottawa in 2024-25. He has 90 goals and 66 assists in 236 career games — all with the Senators — after coming to the nation's capital as part of the Erik Karlsson trade with the San Jose Sharks in 2018.

But the 25-year-old carrying a $7.95-million cap hit for the next five seasons has struggled to stay healthy throughout his career — including three separate shoulder injuries that required surgery.

Ottawa hasn't made the playoffs since 2017 despite a boatload of talent led by captain Brady Tkachuk and star centre Tim Stutzle that's been accumulated through a long rebuild.

The Senators (31-25-5) currently hold the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, while the Sabres (24-31-6) sit in the basement and are on course to miss the playoffs for a 14th straight season.

The move was the first big one with Friday's deadline set for 3 p.m. ET after several GMs made splashes in the days leading up to the cutoff.

The Toronto Maple Leafs acquired centre Scott Laughton and defenceman Brandon Carlo ahead of Friday's NHL trade deadline.

The Leafs sent a conditional 2027 first-round draft pick and forward prospect Nikita Grebenkin to Philadelphia as part of the deal for Laughton.

The Flyers, who retained 50 per cent of his remaining US$3-million salary cap hit both this season and next, also shipped fourth- and six-round selections — in 2025 and 2027 — to Toronto. The first-rounder heading to the Flyers is top-10 protected.

The Leafs then acquired Carlo from the Boston Bruins for centre prospect Fraser Minten and a first-round pick.

Toronto had to move salary off its books for the trades to work.

The club dealt defenceman Conor Timmins and forward Connor Dewar to the Pittsburgh Penguins for a fifth-round pick, while little-used tough guy Ryan Reaves cleared waivers and was assigned to the Leafs' American Hockey League affiliate.

Laughton and Carlo join a contender in the thick of the Atlantic Division race with the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning.

The six-foot-one, 191-pound Laughton — a versatile, 30-year-old forward from nearby Oakville, Ont. — had 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 points in 60 games with the Flyers in 2024-25.

The 20th overall pick in 2012 by Philadelphia registered 265 points (106 goals, 159 assists) in 661 regular-season contests for the franchise. He added 10 points (four goals, six assists) in 24 playoff games.

The six-foot-five, 220-pound Carlo adds more size to a Leafs blue-line corps that has seen a lot of change since the summer.

The 28-year-old from Colorado Springs, Colo., selected 37th overall in 2015 by Boston has one goal and eight assists in 63 games this season.

Carlo, whose contract runs through 2026-27 with an average annual value of $4.1 million that will see a 15-per-cent retention from the Bruins, has 109 points (29 goals, 80 assists) in 617 regular-season contests. He's chipped in 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in 72 playoff games that included last spring's first-round playoff victory over Toronto.

The Winnipeg Jets have acquired veteran defenceman Luke Schenn from the Pittsburgh Penguins for two draft picks.

Winnipeg is sending a second-round pick in 2026 and a fourth-round choice in 2027 to Pittsburgh.

The Jets have also landed forward Brandon Tanev from the Seattle Kraken for a second-rounder, according to multiple reports.

The Penguins flipped Schenn after acquiring him and forward Tommy Novak from the Nashville Predators for Michael Bunting and a fourth-rounder on Wednesday. Schenn did not play a game with Pittsburgh.

The 35-year-old from Saskatoon has one goal and four assists in 61 games this season. The journeyman has been involved in several trades during his career, playing for eight different NHL franchises.

The Florida Panthers added defenceman Seth Jones from the Chicago Blackhawks, while the Tampa Bay Lightning picked up forwards Yanni Gourde and Oliver Bjorkstrand from the Seattle Kraken as part of the East's arms race.

Meanwhile out in the West, the Edmonton Oilers added size up front with the acquisition of Trent Frederic from the Boston Bruins before getting some blue-line help in the form of Jake Walman from the San Jose Sharks.

The Boston Bruins traded longtime franchise fixture Brad Marchand to the Florida Panthers at Friday's trade deadline, according to multiple reports.

The deal was a stunner as there wasn't any speculation that the four-time All-Star and team captain would be dealt. What the Bruins received wasn't immediately known.

Marchand was in his 16th season with the Bruins and had stated he wanted to finish his career in Boston. But contract extension talks didn't go well and Marchand is set to be an unrestricted free agent following the season.

The 36-year-old winger is currently out with an upper-body injury. He last played March 1 is considered week-to-week.

Marchand ranks fourth in Bruins' history in games played (1,090) and goals (422), fifth in points (976) and sixth in assists (554).

Marchand was a key figure when Boston won the Stanley Cup in 2011. He had 11 goals and eight assists in 25 postseason games. Overall, he had 56 goals and 138 points in 157 playoff games.

Marchand had 21 goals and 47 points in 61 games this season. It is his 12th straight 20-goal season and 14th overall. His career high for goals is 39 in 2016-17.

His career best of 100 points was achieved during the 2018-19 season.

The Panthers (81 points) have the second-most points in the Eastern Conference and are gearing up to defend their Stanley Cup title from last season.

The Vegas Golden Knights brought back a familiar face with the trade for Reilly Smith from the New York Rangers. The Colorado Avalanche snagged centre Brock Nelson from the New York Islanders.

Mikko Rantanen is heading back to the Western Conference, and the Dallas Stars paid a big price in money and assets, agreeing to acquire the prolific playoff performer from the Carolina Hurricanes before the NHL's trade deadline on Friday, a person briefed on the deal told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the trade has not yet been cleared by the NHL, or announced by either team. Several media outlets, including TSN, first reported the trade.

Dallas dealt promising rookie forward Logan Stankoven and two first-round picks as part of a long-awaited, block-buster trade to acquire Rantanen. And that doesn't include Dallas agreeing to an eight-year, $96 million contract after both the Hurricanes and Colorado Avalanche failed in their attempts to sign the player to a long-term deal