With NHL teams spending around $400 million on the first day of free agency, the biggest winners just might be the agents. But there were a lot of smiling general managers and players on July 1. These five were the big winners following the first day of free agency:

1. Chicago Blackhawks: Not only did they land the biggest prize of day one in defenseman Brian Campbell, they surprised many by signing the top available goalie in Cristobal Huet. Chicago general manager Dale Tallon earns high marks for building on the excitement of a turnaround season and enters this season with a ton of momentum.

By giving Huet a four-year deal worth $22.5 million, Chicago will be spending over $12 million in goal next season. Nikolai Khabibulin is set to make $6.75 million next year. It's expected that the Blackhawks will move Khabibulin, but as of Tuesday night, Tallon said that wasn't the plan. "Khabibulin and Cristobal Huet will play together and be a great tandem for us," Tallon said. "You can't win without goaltending."

2. Mats Sundin: Sundin went to bed in Sweden without a deal, but the interest and offers made to the Swede were staggering. Vancouver general manager Mike Gillis confirmed that the Canucks made a serious pitch to the veteran center -- a two-year deal worth $20 million.

The New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens are also in the mix. But Gillis sounded optimistic on Tuesday night. "I think that [Sundin] was extremely encouraged with how aggressive we were going after him and identifying him as a key person," Gillis said.

3. Defensemen: While many of the top forwards waited to see what Marian Hossa was going to do, blue liners fell into place shortly after Campbell signed his eight-year deal. After that, Wade Redden (six years, $39 million with the Rangers) Michal Rozsival (four-years, $20 million with the Rangers), Mark Streit (five-years, $20.5 million with the Islanders) and Mike Commodore (five years, $18.75 million with Columbus) signed big deals.

The run on defensemen meant Ron Hainsey and Brooks Orpik entered the second day of free agency as the best available defensemen, with plenty of teams still looking to address weaknesses on the back end.

4. Tampa Bay Lightning: The Lightning got some bad news when Brian Rolston informed the team he was going to test free agency despite a significant offer from the Lightning. But the new ownership group in Tampa recovered nicely, signing right winger Radim Vrbata to a three-year, $9 million contract that is completely reasonable for a guy who scored 27 goals last season in Phoenix.

Later, the Lightning solidified their goaltending by adding veteran Olaf Kolzig for one year at $1.5 million. Add that to expected extensions for Vinny Lecavalier and Mike Smith along with the previous additions of Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts, Steven Stamkos and Vaclav Prospal, and the turnaround is quite staggering. St. Petersburg Times writer Damian Cristodero added it up, and the summer makeover could end up costing over $72 million.

5. Lou Lamoriello: The New Jersey general manager dipped into his old playbook and added former Devils Rolston and Bobby Holik. Their two-way play makes both veterans a perfect fit in New Jersey. "Maybe we can get the 1995 team back," Rolston joked in a comment to Star-Ledger beat writer Rich Chere. "Maybe we can call up Randy McKay and get him back."

New Jersey took care of their own players early in the day, signing forward Jay Pandolfo and defenseman Bryce Salvador. Holik, who has played in exactly four playoff games since leaving New Jersey after the 2001-02 season, sounded especially relieved to return to a Stanley Cup contender. "I'm very excited to get on a team that, if all goes well, will compete at the top of the conference," Holik told Sporting News on Tuesday night. "I think Lou is adding the right pieces."

Craig Custance is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at ccustance@sportingnews.com.

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