BUFFALO, N.Y. — As pleased as Jason Pominville was upon hearing he was returning to the Buffalo Sabres, it was nothing compared to the excitement of his son, Jayden.

“My little guy already has his (Sabres) jersey on right now,” Pominville said Friday, shortly after the former Sabres captain and defenseman Marco Scandella were acquired in a trade with Minnesota. “My little kid said, ‘You’re going to have a chance to play with Jack Eichel.’ So he’s pumped.”

Traded to the Wild in April 2013 when Buffalo began a purge of veteran players, Pominville rejoins the rebuilding Sabres and a youth movement that includes Eichel, their star second-year center.

At 30, Pominville provides veteran leadership to an underachieving team that lacked accountability last season. Scandella, meanwhile, fills an immediate need on a revamped defense that added Nathan Beaulieu in a trade two weeks ago.

The Wild addressed needs of their own by freeing up salary cap space and filling forward roles by acquiring speedy play-maker Tyler Ennis, a former Portland Pirate, and adding a physical presence in Marcus Foligno.

“It just wasn’t realistic that we were going to be able to bring our team back as it was constituted at the end of last year and into next season,” Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher said. “I think we checked a few boxes with the trade today.”

The teams also swapped 2018 draft picks, with Minnesota picking up a third-round selection in exchange for a fourth-round pick in a trade struck a day before the NHL’s free-agency period opens.

CAPITALS: Washington re-signed Dmitry Orlov to a $30.6 million, six-year deal.

Orlov, who has become one of Caps’ best defenseman, will count $5.1 million against the salary cap through the 2022-23 season. General Manager Brian MacLellan announced the move one day before Orlov was set to become a restricted free agent.

The 25-year-old Russian was the Capitals’ most improved player last season. He had six goals and a career-high 27 assists in 82 games.

FLAMES: Calgary signed defenseman Michael Stone to a three-year deal reportedly worth $10.5 million.

Stone, a former Portland Pirate, was acquired from Arizona before last season’s trade deadline.

BUYOUTS: The Florida Panthers were one of several teams to buy out a player in the last chance this offseason, clearing salary-cap space for the start of free agency Saturday.

The Panthers saved $2.67 million by buying out forward Jussi Jokinen, the New Jersey Devils saved almost $4.5 million by buying out forwards Michael Cammalleri and Devante Smith-Pelly, the Boston Bruins saved $1.73 million by buying out forward Jimmy Hayes, the Winnipeg Jets saved $1.17 million by buying out defenseman Mark Stuart, and the Calgary Flames saved almost $2 million by buying out forward Lance Bouma and defenseman Ryan Murphy.

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