Ray Shero showed up for work Tuesday hoping to improve the Penguins' penalty-killing, not determined to acquire coveted sniper Marian Hossa.
By the 3 p.m. NHL trade deadline, the Penguins' general manager had hit the lottery, acquiring Hossa and Pascal Dupuis from Atlanta and defenseman Hal Gill from Toronto and surrendering only forwards Erik Christensen and Colby Armstrong from the Penguins' major-league roster.
"At 1 p.m. I had zero going," Shero said. "We were into some different things that weren't happening. I wasn't sure we were going to get anything."
Shero wound up with Gill, a 6-foot-7 defenseman, for a second-round pick in 2008 and a fifth-round pick in 2009.
And continued conversations with Atlanta landed Hossa, a goal-scoring winger and the league's most sought-after player at the deadline, and Dupuis, a speedy winger who specializes in penalty-killing and role-playing.
The Thrashers received Christensen and Armstrong, 2007 No. 1 draft pick Angelo Esposito and a 2008 first-round pick.
"I had talked to (Atlanta GM) Don Waddell at the All-Star Game in Atlanta, just to kind of get our nose in it," Shero said. "The chances a month ago of us getting Marian Hossa were, in my opinion, less than five percent.
"We stayed in it, stayed in it and it came to fruition. These things come together quickly. That's exactly what happened."
The inclusions of Christensen and Armstrong apparently sealed the deal.
"It gets them two players that help them immediately," Shero said. "Just draft picks and young assets weren't going to do it for them, so that was the deal at the end."
Hossa, 29, is in his 10th NHL season. He registered 26 goals and 30 assists for 56 points in 60 games with Atlanta this season and has 296 goals, 342 assists and 638 points in 689 career NHL games.
Hossa, who had a career-high 100 points last season (43-57-100), will become an unrestricted free agent July 1.
"A world-class player," Shero said.
He's also one that's excited to be coming to the Penguins.
"There is so much talent, it's almost scary," Hossa said.
Dupuis, another free-agent-to-be, had 10 goals, five assists and 15 points in 62 games with the Thrashers this season and has 81 goals, 81 assists and 162 points in 419 NHL games.
Gill, who will be 33 on April 6, has earned a reputation for using his 6-foot-7, 250-pound frame to envelope opponents during 10 NHL seasons with Boston and Toronto.
He was a traditional thorn in the side of Jaromir Jagr when Jagr was with the Penguins and Gill the Bruins.
Shero called Gill, a native of Concord, Mass, and a Providence College product, "one of the better penalty-killers in the NHL," and "a big body who can play against some of the stronger forwards."
Gill is under contract for next season.
Armstrong was the Penguins' No. 1 pick in 2001 and their seventh-leading scorer this season (9-15-24). Christensen was a third-round pick in 2002 and the Penguins' ninth-leading scorer (9-11-20) this season.
They'll be missed, Shero said, because of their legacies with the organization, their on-ice production and their contributions to team chemistry.
"I do have a soft spot for Erik and Colby, so I have mixed feelings," Shero said. "Tomorrow's a new day. Starting with me, our coaches, our players, we gotta regroup and become a team pretty quickly."
Five biggest trade deadline deals for the Penguins
• March 4, 1991
Ron Francis, Grant Jennings and Ulf Samuelsson traded from Hartford to Pittsburgh for John Cullen, Jeff Parker and Zarley Zalapski.
• March 5, 1984
Randy Carlyle traded from Pittsburgh to Winnipeg for Winnipeg's first-round choice in 1984 entry draft (Doug Bodger) and future considerations.
• Feb. 27, 2007
Florida traded LW Gary Roberts to Pittsburgh for D Noah Welch.
• March 20, 1996
RW Alek Stojanov traded from Vancouver to Pittsburgh for RW Markus Naslund.
• March 14, 2000
Ottawa traded G Ron Tugnutt and D Janne Laukkanen to Pittsburgh for G Tom Barrasso.
