It goes without saying how much Ray Shero meant to the game of hockey. He was influential with every team he was on with the Wild, Penguins, New Jersey Devils, and Ottawa Senators. In a press release sent out on Wednesday, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman had some words on Shero's sudden passing.
"Ray Shero's smile and personality lit up every room he walked into and brightened the day of everyone he met. Widely respected throughout hockey for his team-building acumen and eye for talent, he was even more beloved for how he treated everyone fortunate enough to have known him."
Shero in Pittsburgh, made some really good trades that helped spark Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang's prime years. Let's take a look at which ones were the best.
February 26, 2008: The Penguins and Atlanta Thrashers make a historic trade
This trade is the one that Penguins fans remember the most. Especially one that brought a lot of success to the team and really kickstarted Shero's great run in the Steel City.
The Penguins acquired Pascal Dupuis and Marian Hossa from the Thrashers in exchange for Colby Armstrong, Erik Christensen, Angelo Esposito, and a 2008 1st round pick.
What a trade this was for Shero and the Penguins. Marian Hossa and Dupuis went to the Stanley Cup Finals with the Penguins in 2008 and lost to the Red Wings in which Hossa then went to the Red Wings in 2009 and lost to Dupuis and the Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals in a rematch series.
In the regular season with the Penguins in 12 games, Hossa had 3 goals and 7 assists. In the playoffs in 20 games, he had 12 goals and 14 assists. He scored an iconic OT GWG against the New York Rangers in the 2008 playoffs to send the Penguins to the next round.
As for Dupuis, in the regular season with the Penguins, he had 109 goals and 138 assists in 452 games. In the playoffs, he had 14 goals and 19 assists in 77 games. His only playoff goal in 2010 against the Ottawa Senators was an OT GWG and was the one to send the Penguins to the next round.
What a trade this was for Shero to pull off and win!
March 4, 2009: The Penguins pull off a trade with the New York Islanders for a legend
This trade pulled off by Shero was the Billy Guerin trade. What a trade this was. The Penguins acquired Guerin from the New York Islanders for 2009 conditional 5th round pick which could turn into a 4th rounder if the Penguins made the playoffs in 2009 or turn into a 3rd round pick if they advanced to the 2nd round of the 2009 playoffs. Everyone knows what happened in 2009.
In 95 regular season games for the Penguins, Guerin had 26 goals and 31 assists. In 35 playoff games for the Penguins, he had 11 goals and 13 assists. He scored an iconic OT GWG for the Penguins to eliminate the Flyers from the 2009 playoffs.
Another absolute steal of a trade for Shero as Guerin was very influential in the 2009 playoffs as the Penguins would defeat the Red Wings in 7 games in a rematch from the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals, to win the Cup.
February 26, 2009: The Penguins acquire a franchise cornerstone from the Ducks
Who knew this trade would be one of the most influential and iconic ones in the entirety of Penguins history? On this day, the Penguins acquired Eric Tangradi and Chris Kunitz in exchange for Ryan Whitney.
This trade proves iconic because Kunitz was on all three of the Penguins Stanley Cup winning teams in 2009, 2016, and 2017 and was huge in his tenure as a Penguin.
In 569 regular season games, Kunitz had 169 goals and 219 assists. In 106 playoff games, he had 23 goals and 53 assists. No goal more iconic than the one he scored in the 2017 Eastern Conference Finals against the Ottawa Senators in Game 7.
An OT GWG to the max. Every Penguins fan and hockey fan remembers this one and will haunt Senators fans for an eternity.
Shero was a wizard in the Penguins front office and will be dearly missed around the hockey community.