Trade deadline winners include Golden Knights, Panthers and Hurricanes

NHL teams combined to make 23 trades on Friday, dealing a total of 33 players and more than 20 draft picks, before the league’s deadline, with some teams and players seeming to win — and some seeming to lose.

The defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights, three-time defending Metropolitan Division-champion Carolina Hurricanes and league-leading Florida Panthers appear to have made the most of the opportunity.

“Some of the teams at the top were very aggressive — and it looks like a real arms race,” Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman said.

The San Jose Sharks, Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins, meanwhile, chose a different and questionable approach at the potentially pivotal point of the season.

Players, too, fell on one side or the other when they were traded to a contending team or ended up stuck with a struggling squad.