Day 1 of 2022 NHL free agency was . . . pretty tame until Wednesday evening, when the verdict on Johnny Gaudreau's next destination finally came in (and it was a stunner).Otherwise,Nazem Kadri is taking his time with his decision, John Klingberg remains unsigned, and big-name players such as Darcy Kuemper, Claude Giroux and Jack Campbell all went exactly where they were expected to go.While there was not a ton of chaos and frenzy, there were certainly winners and losers. A few teams made pushes to become playoff contenders, while other teams may be facing a tough 2022-23 campaign after sitting back.NHL FA TRACKER:Let's take a look at the winner and losers of Day 1 of NHL free agency:Winner: Columbus Blue JacketsI'm going to be honest, it was going to take a lot for the Blue Jackets to be crowned winners in free agency after giving Eric Gudbranson four years at $4 million a year. But general manager Jarmo Kekalainen crept out of the shadows and ripped Johnny Gaudreau, the top free agent on the market, away from the Islanders and Devils.Up until Wednesday afternoon, New Jersey and New York seemingly were the last two teams left in the Gaudreau sweepstakes. The Flyers were out for financial reasons; they didn't have the cap room to sign him. But then the Blue Jackets popped up late on Day 1, and by 7 p. Kent Hrbek Jersey m. ET, they had landed the winger.Gaudreau immediately gives Columbus a top player who can be paired on the opposite wing with Patrik Laine. After long being known as a place that every high-end player wants to leave (Jeff Carter, Artemi Panarin, Sergei Bobrovsky), Columbus make the biggest splash in free agency this offseason. What a win for the franchise and the city.Losers: New York Islanders and New Jersey DevilsDevils GM Tom Fitzgerald and Isles GM Lou Lamoriello both have to be pretty stunned. While there was a chance one was going to lose Gaudreau to the other, not many thought that Minnesota Twins Hats both would come away empty-handed.For the Devils, it's a pretty big blow. They're an up-and-coming team with strong young players and could have used an elite winger. The lo s especially hurts after not getting Juraj Slafkovsky at the draft. Gaudreau wouldn't have put them over the top, but he would have sent them in the right direction for their future.For the Islanders, this is now the third big-name free agent they have mi sed out on in recent years (John Tavares and Artemi Panarin were the others). New York needs scoring, and adding Gaudreau would have given Mat Barzal a weapon he desperately needs. Instead, it has to look elsewhere and hope it doesn't lose Barzal in the near future.Winner: Ottawa SenatorsThis is le s about being a Day 1 winner and more about winning the offseason. The Senators added Alex DeBrincat and Cam Talbot prior to Wednesday and then signed elite forward Claude Giroux to a three-year contract.Giroux joins a top-six forward group that includes DeBrincat, Brady Tkachuk, Drake Batherson, Tim Stutzle and Josh Norris (once Ottawa re-signs him; he is a restricted free agent). Those are two talented, dangerous top lines.And General manager Pierre Dorion indicated that he isn't done. While the Senators have taken real steps toward becoming playoff contenders, the blue line still needs help. But it's hard not to like the moves that have already been made.Loser: Calgary FlamesGM Brad Treliving did everything in his power Ervin Santana Jersey to keep Johnny Gaudreau, including reportedly offering him an eight-year, $76 million contract that would have made him one of the highest-paid players in the league. Gaudreau declined and is electing to sign elsewhere, leaving the Flames without their best player and getting nothing out of it.With Gaudreau out the door, that could mean a Matthew Tkachuk trade is coming. He's an RFA due a $9 million qualifying offer, but with Gaudreau gone, he may not want to stay in Calgary, either. This would not be the first time he has been connected to trade rumors.If both players leave, that signals some dark days ahead for Calgary, which is coming off a Pacific Division title. It's a tough spot for Flames fans; there really is no one at which to point the finger.Winner: Detroit Red WingsGM Steve Yzerman entered free agency with one of the largest amounts of available cap space, and he didn't hesitate to utilize it.He signed Andrew Copp to a five-year contract, giving the Wings a second-line center option. He gave David Perron a two-year contract; Perron can be a goal-scoring winger and a great mentor for the team's young players. He took a flyer on Dominik Kubalik with a two-year deal. He also gave Ben Chiarot a four-year contract that carries a $4.75 million cap hit. I don't love that deal, but Chiarotdoes improves the blue line for the time being.After previously trading for, and then signing, goalie Ville Hu so, the Red Wings join the Senators as an Atlantic Division team that could Jason Castro Jersey make noise next season.NHL FA 2022:Loser: Philadelphia FlyersWhile the Flames did everything they could to keep him, it doesn't appear the Flyers did anything to get him.It was clear there was interest from Gaudreau in signing with Philadelphia. He's from South Jersey and grew up a Flyers fan. But they needed to create cap space to make him an offer.What did they do instead? Well, nothing, really. There were reports they tried trying to move James van Riemsdyk and his $7 million cap hit, but they did not want to give up a first-round draft pick as a sweetener. It feels as if GM Chuck Fletcher's "efforts" to clear cap space weren't much, and he later confirmed that team was out on Gaudreau. So much for being aggre sive this offseason.Oh, and they gave Nic Deslauriers a four-year contract. More on that later.Winner: Carolina HurricanesWhile Carolina didn't make any big signings, it did make the two biggest trades of the day. And GM Don Waddell absolutely fleeced both Sharks GM Mike Grier and Golden Knights GM Kelly McCrimmon.He found a replacement for Tony DeAngelo by acquiring Brent Burns Minnesota Twins Jersey from San Jose, which was looking to get some cap relief (San Jose is retaining 33 percent of his salary). Burns gives the Hurricanes an elite offensive defenseman who loves to shoot the puck from the blue line. He and Jaccob Slavin will make a nice pairing.Then, the Hurricanes acquired Max Pacioretty and Dylan Coghlan from the Golden Knights for future considerations, so practically nothing. Vegas needed to create cap space to re-sign Reilly Smith and it got Pacioretty's $7 million cap hit off its books. Pacioretty is still an elite scoring winger who should fit in very well with Carolina's top six.Loser: Toronto Maple LeafsToronto's main question this offseason was about its goaltending. The solution? Bring in two big question marks.The Maple Leafs traded for Matt Murray a few days before free agency and then signed Ilya Samsonov to a one-year deal on Wednesday. As a tandem, they're a pretty decent 1-2