Well, for my initial foray into the wild world of the blogosphere – not sure if that’s above or below the ozone layer, but hey, I’m a writer, not a scientist – I figure I should be the 27,437th person on the Internet to rate winners and losers from Tuesday’s trade deadline extravaganza.

Honestly, no one knows for sure who “won” or “lost” on Tuesday. Not until somebody hoists that big silver Cup in June.

But, why let common sense stand in the way of a fun little rant.

Winners:

Pittsburgh – They got Marian Hossa, the best player available, and didn’t have to give up a whole lot of consequence to get him. Colby Armstrong’s best asset was being Sidney Crosby’s BFF, but Sid’s a nice young man and should have no trouble making more friends. Erik Christensen is a nice player, but he won’t be the difference between the Pens winning the Cup. And while Angelo Esposito has a high ceiling, there’s got to be a reason he’s been cut from Canada’s World Junior team three straight years. He might be great, or he might not. Either way, you have to give up something to get something. And Hossa certainly is something.

The deal looks even better when you look at the fact that none of the other elite teams in the East – New Jersey, Ottawa, Montreal – did anything to improve themselves.

Picking up Hal Gill gives the Pens a physical presence on the back end that they also desperately needed.

Tampa Bay – Call it addition through subtraction. First, they got a decent defense prospect from Philly in Alexandre Picard. Covering the Flyers before coming to NHL.com, I’ve seen Picard play a lot, and with Tampa’s up-tempo style of play, he’ll be a real good fit there. He’s very offensive-minded, skates well, moves the puck well. And the ’Ning weren’t going to re-sign Vinny Prospal this summer anyway, so it works on both levels.

Shedding Brad Richards’ contract was maybe the best move any team made at the deadline. For all the hoopla surrounding Richards winning the Conn Smythe trophy in 2004, the guy is far from an elite player. He’s a decent passer, but never has made the guys around him better. For a guy supposed to be an elite two-way player, Richards is a League-worst minus-25 this season, a minus-44 the last two seasons, and a minus-55 for his career.

Worst of all, he cost the Lightning their franchise goalie when Tampa gave him that ridiculous five-year contract, $39 million contract.

Mike Smith was No. 1A to Marty Turco in Dallas, and if coach John “Fonzie” Tortorella doesn’t warp his mind, he’ll be a solid addition. Jeff Halpern and Jussi Jokinen are inexpensive, serviceable players.

Anaheim – The best move is the one you don’t make, and by not trading the first-round pick they got from Edmonton in the Dustin Penner signing, they gained a certain lottery pick for what many consider a deep draft in June.

Losers

Montreal – Not sure what Bob Gainey’s game plan going into Tuesday was, but a large segment of Canadiens fans certainly aren’t happy.

It was considered a fait accompli that Marian Hossa was going to Montreal; one report said the Canadiens had Hossa’s gloves pre-ordered.

Gainey then dealt goalie Cristobal Huet to Washington for a 2009 second-round pick, putting his team’s fortunes in the hand of 20-year-old goalie Carey Price.

That’s a big gamble for a team with Cup hopes.

Ottawa – Martin Lapointe wasn’t enough to save the sinking ship.

First they lost out on the Peter Forsberg sweepstakes. Then they didn’t land Marian Hossa. They couldn’t move polarizing goalie Ray Emery. Now there’s reports coach John Paddock could get the ax at any moment. The Sens are sliding at the worst time of year.

Minnesota – Maybe they’re going for a Hanson Brothers reunion tour? Boogaard, Fedoruk and Simon … they might as well go on the ice without gloves or sticks for all the good they’ll do.

Old time hockey, eh?

New Jersey – The Devils obviously are going for quantity over quality when it comes to defensemen. Bryce Salvador? Well, at least all it cost was Cam Janssen, who hasn’t logged a minute of NHL action this season.

With a defense corps that includes Norris non-favorites like Mike Mottau and Sheldon Brookbank, it’s unfathomable how the Devils are on top of the Eastern Conference. If they hold on, they should rename the coach of the year trophy the Brent Sutter Award.

Still, the Devils needed to do better than Salvador – a nice player, for sure, but honestly, how many stay-at-home defensemen do they need? Maybe the plan is to play a 2-3 formation at even-strength – two forwards, three defensemen.

On a personal note, I’ve noticed a lot of Devils fans around the campus here at NHL.com. Personally, I find rooting for the Devils like rooting for migraine headaches.

Yes, I’m a Flyers fan, and proud to admit it. My team has a home city, and real fans, and while the last parade may have happened when MASH was a hot new TV show, there’s a tradition and class behind the black and orange crest that some folks aren’t bright enough to realize.