More trades were consummated during the week leading up to the NHL’s trade deadline than in the preceding six months, and the frenzied approach taken by the league’s GMs left some obvious winners and losers. Most of the Cup contenders attempted in some fashion to match the Predators’ acquisition of Peter Forsberg, with varying degrees of success. The biggest winners — besides the “sellers” taking advantage of a favorable market — were the Islanders and the San Jose Sharks, both of whom emerged as aggressive “buyers” and dramatically improved their lineups for the stretch run.

The Islanders have significantly fortified themselves, adding two forwards (Ryan Smyth and Richard Zednik) who could be differencemakers for a team that plays close games virtually every night. Smyth, a Western Conference All-Star, had been scoring at a point-per-game pace for the Edmonton Oilers at the time of the trade, and Islanders head coach Ted Nolan was understandably ecstatic when the deal was consummated.

“Ryan’s not going to just make our team better, he’s going to make everybody in our organization better,” Nolan said. “Great players make other people better, and I think Ryan is going to make our team a lot better.”

Nolan expects Alexei Yashin (out with a sprained knee) back in the lineup soon, and is planning to put Smyth and Jason Blake alongside Yashin on what would be a devastating first line. In Zednik, the Isles have added a hard-working forward who should also fit quite nicely into their lunch-pail lineup.

Meanwhile, the Sharks added power forward Bill Guerin and reliable defenseman Craig Rivet to one of the league’s youngest — and most talentladen — lineups. Guerin has previous experience playing with Sharks superstar center Joe Thornton in Boston and is expected to line up at left wing on a line with Thornton and 2006 Rocket Richard Trophy-winner Jonathan Cheechoo. Needless to say, Sharks head coach Ron Wilson is quite pleased with his team’s upgrades.

“When we brought in Joe [Thornton], he integrated in easily because of his personality,” Wilson said. “I think Billy is blessed with a similar personality, very positive outlook, and a real good sense of humor. I know Billy quite well from the World Cup teams and the Olympic team, I’ve known him for 15 years or so now, and it’s going to be a lot of fun for me to have (him) on my team.”

So here’s how the teams line up this week. Statistically, teams are measured from left to right by games played, W–L–OTL, standings points, goals scored, goals allowed, power play success, and penalty-killing success. Please note that the data include games played on Tuesday night, and that our statistics for special teams effectiveness also take shorthanded goals into account. Each team’s ranking from last week appears in parentheses.

1 BUFFALO SABRES (1): GM Darcy Regier was able to get only a second-round pick in return for Martin Biron, and though Dainius Zubrus should help up front, more reinforcements were clearly needed for the injury-riddled Sabres. Grade: C+
63 42–16–5 89 240 183 15.2%83.2%

2 NASHVILLE PREDATORS (3): The Predators were quiet on deadline day, mostly because they’d already made their huge move, the acquisition of Peter Forsberg. Assuming “Foppa” remains healthy, the Preds are the team to beat in the West. Grade: A
64 42–18–4 88 219 164 16.2% 87.6%

3 DETROIT RED WINGS (2): The pickup of Todd Bertuzzi was a case of “low risk, high reward.” If Bertuzzi — and fellow deadline acquisition Kyle Calder — pan out, the Wings’ retooled offense will nicely complement their stingy defense. Grade: B+
64 40–16–8 88 199 156 15.0%86.6%

4 NEW JERSEY DEVILS (4): Cap concerns forced GM Lou Lamoriello to deal rearguard David Hale to Calgary for a draft pick upgrade. But the move just might provide enough cap space to activate Richard Matvichuk (long-term IR) later this month. Grade: B-
64 40–18–6 86 171 149 14.9% 86.1%

5 ANAHEIM DUCKS (5): After determining the price was too high for rentals Bill Guerin and Keith Tkachuk, Ducks GM Brian Burke essentially stood pat at the deadline, adding only fourth-liner Brad May and depth defenseman Doug O’Brien. Grade: C-
64 37–17–10 84 204 167 20.4%85.2%

6 DALLAS STARS (7): It remains unclear whether Ladislav Nagy will be enough fortification for the goal-starved Stars’ offense. But the addition of Mattias Norstrom to the blue line will make life easier for Marty Turco. Grade: A-
62 38–21–3 79 167 147 16.7%85.2%

7 OTTAWA SENATORS (10): Rather than attempting any major upgrades, GM John Muckler instead provided head coach Bryan Murray with some valuable depth, adding Oleg Saprykin to the forward corps and Lawrence Nycholat to the defense. Grade: B
63 37–22–4 78 219 173 14.3% 87.5%

8 SAN JOSE SHARKS (6): The Sharks have slumped a bit of late, so GM Doug Wilson took bold action, pulling off deals to acquire Bill Guerin and Craig Rivet. Boasting a plethora of young talent, the Sharks will be very tough to beat come playoff time. Grade: A
63 38–24–1 77 189 162 21.7%86.5%

9 VANCOUVER CANUCKS (9): Playmaking center Bryan Smolinski and puck-moving rearguard Brent Sopel were shrewd acquisitions by GM Dave Nonis, and should provide meaningful offensive contributions down the stretch. Grade: B
63 36–22–5 77 165 159 15.4%88.8%

10 PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (8): No team in the NHL has more high-level young talent than the Pens, but they were in short supply of veteran leadership and muscle, now to be provided by deadline acquisitions Gary Roberts and Georges Laraque. Grade: B+
62 33–20–9 75 211 194 17.1% 83.2%

11 MINNESOTA WILD (13): The Wild made only one move in advance of the deadline, acquiring speedy checking center Dominic Moore from the Penguins. The penalty-killing specialist should become an immediate favorite of Jacques Lemaire. Grade: B-
63 35–23–5 75 181 161 15.3%88.0%

12 CALGARY FLAMES (11): GM Darryl Sutter did a nice job of upgrading his team, adding two centers (Craig Conroy and Wayne Primeau) and two rearguards (Brad Stuart and David Hale) to what was already a strong contender. Grade: B+
63 33–21–9 75 205 171 17.5%83.9%

13 TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (12): It cost the Lightning a first-round pick, but adding hard-hitting defenseman Shane O’Brien (140 PIMs) should shore up Tampa’s thin blue line nicely for the playoff run. Grade: B-
65 36–25–4 76 207 198 17.0% 81.6%

14 NEW YORK ISLANDERS (15): The Islanders announced themselves as a “here and now” team as the deadline approached, pulling off deals to acquire Ryan Smyth and Marc-Andre Bergeron from Edmonton and Richard Zednik from Washington. Grade: A+
63 32–23–8 72 189 179 13.8%82.3%

15 ATLANTA THRASHERS (14): Desperate to reach the postseason for the first time in franchise history, the Thrashers traded a combination of prospects, draft picks, and role players to land Keith Tkachuk, Alexei Zhitnik, and Pascal Dupuis. Grade: A-
65 32–23–10 74 196 206 13.7%80.6%

16 CAROLINA HURRICANES 18): The ‘Canes essentially stood pat, making only one small trade to acquire former 30-goal scorer Anson Carter from Columbus in exchange for a fifth-round pick, but that deal could turn out to pay huge dividends. Grade: B
65 32–26–7 71 195 202 13.8%86.0%

17 MONTREAL CANADIENS (17): The free-falling Habs lost big at the deadline; they neither upgraded their lineup nor addressed their most pressing concern, that unrestricted free agent-to-be Sheldon Souray will likely depart in the off-season. Grade: D
66 33–27–6 72 191 200 21.4% 87.3%

18 TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (16): The Leafs did acquire All-Star Yanic Perreault from Phoenix, but if Andrew Raycroft doesn’t pick up his play (four goals on 11 shots against Buffalo on Tuesday), the playoffs will be but a pipe dream. Grade: C+
64 30–25–9 69 203 211 15.9%79.6%

19 NEW YORK RANGERS (20): Getting top prospect Alex Bourret for spare part Pascal Dupuis represented a rare stroke of genius by GM Glen Sather, while the swap of Aaron Ward for Paul Mara is in all likelihood a zero-sum gain. Grade: B
63 30–27–6 66 184 178 18.3%86.2%

20 BOSTON BRUINS (19): Right-shooting defenseman Dennis Wideman should be a nice fit on the power play point, but the price — giving up on talented young forward Brad Boyes, who led all NHL rookies in assists last season — was quite high. Grade: B-
62 30–28–4 64 180 224 14.5%83.6%

21 EDMONTON OILERS (22): While Kevin Lowe certainly got a nice return of futures for UFA-to-be Ryan Smyth, the trade was a huge step backward for the Oilers, who under a supposedly beneficial CBA still cannot afford to keep their best players. Grade: B
64 30–28–6 66 172 185 14.6% 86.7%

22 COLORADO AVALANCHE (21): The Avs swapped enforcers, sending Brad May to Anaheim and reacquiring Scott Parker from San Jose. But if they don’t resign Joe Sakic, failing to trade him will set their rebuilding effort back a full year. Grade: C
64 30–29–5 65 208 207 19.2% 81.8%

23 ST. LOUIS BLUES (23): Although it was disappointing for Blues fans to see their surging team operate as deadline day sellers, the Blues have significantly restocked the organizational cupboard and should soon re-emerge as legitimate contenders. Grade: A
63 27–27–9 63 164 191 11.6% 84.0%

24 FLORIDA PANTHERS (24): The piddling package the Panthers got for Todd Bertuzzi certifies that the Luongo trade was an unmitigated disaster. But at least GM Jacques Martin got a nice return — promising blueliner Noah Welch — for Gary Roberts. Grade: B-
64 25–26–13 63 186 207 17.1% 83.1%

25 WASHINGTON CAPITALS (25): The youthful Caps didn’t have much to do at the deadline, but they converted Dainius Zubrus and Richard Zednik (veteran players not essential to their future) into Jiri Novotny and 2007 first- and second-round draft picks. Grade: B
64 24–29–11 59 193 225 14.2%84.0%

26 PHOENIX COYOTES (27): Proud veterans Curtis Joseph and Jeremy Roenick were disappointed to have been left out of a fire sale that saw Ladislav Nagy, Georges Laraque, Oleg Saprykin, and Yanic Perreault dealt for futures. Grade: B+
63 27–33–3 57 168 214 11.0% 79.8%

27 CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS (26): The ‘Hawks landed Jason Williams in a highly publicized three-way trade, but their under-theradar acquisition of 6-foot-5-inch forward Nikita Alexeev could be a huge steal if coach Denis Savard can spark the talented 25-year-old. Grade: B
63 23–31–9 55 155 190 9.6% 86.5%

28 COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (28): It was a shameful deadline day performance from GM Doug MacLean, who at the very least owed it to Blue Jackets fans to stock up on draft picks in advance of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft (to be held in Columbus). Grade: F
64 24–33–7 55 158 200 14.3%82.4%

29 LOS ANGELES KINGS (29): First-year GM Dean Lombardi did a nice job converting UFAs-to-be and spare-parts veterans into meaningful draft pick upgrades, and the Kings should emerge as one of the NHL’s top teams in the seasons to come. Grade: B+
63 21–32–10 52 178 219 16.0% 79.1%

30 PHILADELPHIA FLYERS (30): While this was without question a hugely disappointing season for the Flyers, GM Paul Holmgren did an absolutely brilliant job pulling his team from the wreckage, landing three top prospects and two valuable draft picks. Grade: A
63 16–37–10 42 166 241 11.0% 88.0%

Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com