CBJ Assoc. GM Bill Zito joins Florida Panthers as General Manager

Bill Zito, who has spent the past seven years as a member of the Columbus Blue Jackets hockey operations department, will be leaving the organization to join the Florida Panthers as the club's general manager, both National Hockey League clubs announced today.
Zito joined the Blue Jackets in August 2013 as assistant general manager, was promoted to associate general manager in September 2018 and for the past year has served as senior vice president of hockey operations, associate general manager and alternate governor.
"Bill Zito's contributions to the Columbus Blue Jackets over the past seven years have been many as he has played a significant role as a leader within our hockey operations department," said Blue Jackets General Manager and Alternate Governor Jarmo Kekalainen. "He is a dear friend and has worked extremely hard and is very deserving of this opportunity.
"While I am disappointed to see him move on, I am happy for Billy and his family, wish him well and thank him, on behalf of our organization, for his dedication, counsel and friendship. We're fortunate to have a strong, talented management team in place that can absorb additional responsibilities presented with Billy's departure, which is our plan at this time."
Zito's tenure with the Blue Jackets included serving as the general manager of the Lake Erie/Cleveland Monsters, the club's American Hockey League affiliate from 2015-19. The Monsters became the first Blue Jackets affiliate to capture the AHL's Calder Cup championship in 2016. He also served as the general manager of the United States Men's National Team that captured a bronze medal at the 2018 IIHF World Championships and was a member of the management team for Team USA that won bronze at the 2015 tournament.