As every member of the Florida Panthers exploded in jubilation Monday night after capturing the franchise’s first Stanley Cup, Bill Zito was bawling. The Panthers GM was the most emotional person in the building,

Just a few days after hoisting the Stanley Cup over his head at Amerant Bank Arena, the Florida Panthers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager sat at a podium at Sphere in Las Vegas just before the first round of the 2024 NHL Draft kicked off on Friday.

Fan favorite, grinder Ryan Lomberg, is off to Calgary, big-minute defenseman Brandon Montour is off to Seattle, penalty kill extraordinaire Kevin Stenlund is off to Utah and successful free-agency pickups from the prior offseason,

We’re still trying to get it right. We’ll still never stop trying to get the right pieces and the right people.”

That was weird because the whole time I’m working,” Zito said Monday. “I keep looking at my phone. I’m looking at my watch.” Although the parade and rally will be lifetime memories for the Panthers, time was ticking away with the start of free agency rapidly approaching on Monday.