With the NHL draft starting on Friday, trade activity has picked up this week.

Tuesday saw a frenzy of deals, with the Buffalo Sabres trading Bowen Byram to the Chicago Blackhawks, the St. Louis Blues shipping Jordan Kyrou to the Washington Capitals, the New Jersey Devils sending Simon Nemec to the Calgary Flames and the Ottawa Senators acquiring William Eklund from the San Jose Sharks.

Here's a brief look at some of the latest rumors involving notable NHL players as the draft approaches.

TSN's Darren Dreger reports the Dallas Stars could make their best, perhaps final contract offer to Robertson. The 26-year-old left winger is an RFA with arbitration rights on July 1 and is also a year away from UFA eligibility. That's sparked rumors of a possible sign-and-trade or an offer sheet scenario.

It's been nearly three weeks since Larkin submitted a trade request to Detroit Red Wings management. It was assumed the Minnesota Wild might be the 29-year-old center's preferred destination. However, Sportsnet's Nick Kypreos recently suggested the Stars were now his landing spot of choice.

According to Dreger, Rielly's agent has submitted a list to the Toronto Maple Leafs of four Western Conference teams as preferred trade destinations. They've left some flexibility to add more teams if necessary. No indication which clubs the 32-year-old defenseman is open to joining, but the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks could use some experienced blueline depth.

CHEK-TV's Rick Dhaliwal reported last Friday that a source told him the St. Louis Blues were "sniffing around" Pettersson. Despite the 27-year-old center's recent struggles, Dhaliwal said there are teams desperate for centers who believe they can turn him back into a point-per-game player. However, the Canucks aren't keen to retain any part of his $11.6 million average annual value to facilitate a trade.

Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic recently reported the Boston Bruins were listening to offers for Zacha. The 29-year-old center is a year away from UFA eligibility. He has a cap hit of $4.75 million and an eight-team trade list. LeBrun noted the Bruins' priority remains re-signing him, but it appears they're keeping their options open in case those extension talks go sideways.

On Monday, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman mentioned Nichushkin as a possible cost-cutting candidate for the Avalanche. The 31-year-old left winger has four years left on his contract with an average annual value of $6.125 million. When healthy, the big winger can be a solid two-way force, but his injury history and well-documented off-ice issues could make him difficult to move.

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