Panthers GM Bill Zito discusses a stellar season, the NHL Draft and more

SUNRISE, Fla. -- A little over a week after the Florida Panthers finally saw their incredible playoff run come to an end in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, general manager Bill Zito addressed the media to talk about the team's stellar season, the upcoming NHL Draft and much more.

Below, check out some of the key quotes from Zito's availability at FLA Live Arena on Wednesday.

On the value of the team's incredible run to the Stanley Cup Final

"There's tremendous value in the lessons learned. In our player exit meetings, almost to a man, certainly the younger guys who'd never been there, they answered the question and said now we know what you're talking about -- how hard it is, what we had to go through, what we had to learn, the triumphs, the failures, everything. I think it's invaluable and I think we're going to see that in the future. It'll manifest itself in more consistent play. Whatever lessons they learned, they'll be able now to put them to use."

On the buzz the team's playoff run generated for hockey in South Florida

"It was fantastic. We all live here. Just the buzz about hockey and the Panthers around town, it was tons of fun. From the manic side of pro sports, you're a fan and people are cheering for you. You felt that you brought the community together. It was exciting. I was very, very fortunate to be a part of it."

On the challenge of making adjustments during a short offseason

"As far as what our needs might be, those type of larger institutional questions, those get answered. Now, the timeframe that we have to implement them is not great. On the trade front, certainly teams are reluctant to call you when you're in [the playoffs], so now your phone is blowing up and I'm trying to get back and handle some of those things. It's a little chaotic, but it's relatively organized. It's just time. As far as preparing for training camp, you also have to find out what is available."

On players potentially missing time early in 2023-24 due to injuries

"We're going to have a real challenge this year. We've known some of our players are hurt and they may miss parts of the early season. We can't replace that money. If we spend it, when they return we have to be able to absorb them back in. If we spend it and they come back, we're shot. We can't do it. Now our is cap is effectively even lower because we have to go through this timeframe, but we'll get it done. We're going to have a team on the ice for Opening Night [laughs]. We're excited."

On if the team's approach to the offseason changed after making a deep playoff run

"Some of our needs, I think, were rather glaring or simple to figure out. But it's almost like a spiderweb where one addition here could maybe lead you to a different kind of acquisition at another place in the lineup, certainly in regard to forward and D. If I get the one guy, I can kind of go with a young kid here. The cap obviously plays into it. Projecting out the free agents plays into it. Possible trades play into it. There's a lot of moving parts.

On finding the balance between not rocking the boat, but also needing to make changes

"I think a significant part of this group is that they were a team. It was the character, the graciousness of the guys in the room towards each other. It's maybe not measurable, but it's real, it's tangible and it's not something to be played with. In the exit meetings I've had so far, so many players unilaterally brought up the team and the room. One of the players said, 'I've never been in an NHL locker room where there were no complaints throughout the year.' No one [complained] about ice time. No one was mad about the pizza. It was just sort of this group that invested themselves fully in each other. It's very, very important. Now, with all that said, my job is to try and get the best team we can get. At some point that becomes the sum of the pieces. If there's a move that we think will make us better, we'll pursue it. Yeah, it can be hard. It forces you to really, really be diligent and approach the situations with rigor."

On discussions with the team's current free agents, including defenseman Radko Gudas

"I owe it to that room to do everything to try and keep everybody together. It's going to be daunting. I think it's possible. I'm hopeful, but at the same time individuals have to worry about themselves. We only have so much that we're able to do. We're pursuing it and talking to everybody. Hopefully we can get a good result."

On finding value with five picks in the upcoming 2023 NHL Draft

"Wherever you pick, you'll always try to find the best value and try to find the best player you can. We've had good fortune in re-stocking in alternate ways. We signed a young Latvian player who was the MVP of the Czech league, [Uvis] Balinskis, a defenseman. … We can sort of add in other ways where you don't have those picks. We're hoping that goes well and we can yield another player through that process as well.

On the possibility of moving up to get a higher pick in the draft

"The moving up part is probably a draft-day function in this instance. If we have somebody that we have rated very, very high and they're slipping, slipping, slipping, but I don't know if he's going to get into the 60's, maybe we do give something up because this is going to be too valuable to pass up here. There could always be trades. You never know until that phone rings. About a year ago it kinda happened. You never know what could happen. Maybe we do end up with a fist-round pick or two. You just don't know. Our amateur scouts, it's really hard [for them]. I think they have the toughest job in the organization. They're literally traversing the world trying to find the best talent. They'll rank it, and then wherever we are [on the draft board] they'll be ready to go to take advantage if it's possible."

On being nominated for the NHL's 'GM of the Year' for the second time in three seasons

"It's an honor and it's an honor for our staff and our guys and our pro scouts. I know that the GM sits in the chair and what have you, but I don't go out and scout all those players. Those guys have the arguments of, 'We need to get this guy! No, we need to get this guy!' It's hard. It's really hard. Our staff is outstanding. That's the thing I think the most about that."

On the status of goaltender Spencer Knight heading into 2023-24

"I've had contact with him. He's doing well. We expect him back in the fall. I talk to him or text him pretty frequently. He's doing great."

On Matthew Tkachuk quickly becoming an ambassador for the Panthers

"It's fantastic. You guys have gotten to know Matthew a little bit, so you know that it's sincere. I used the word romance earlier when talking about the playoff run. There's a romantic side of hockey. He loves hockey. He loves being a player. He loves living in South Florida. It's all real. As an ambassador for what we're trying to do on the ice, off the ice, the character, the buy-in to the community, the excitement [is there]. I can't speak to other teams, but every single time we get off the airplane the fans are there. … I think Matthew really takes that to heart as well. He's a wonderful ambassador of the game, of the Panthers, and we're fortunate to have him."

On watching Matthew Tkachuk have so many big moments in the playoffs

"We live in an age of superlatives, right? It's hard to put a label on what he accomplished and the way he accomplished it in the playoffs. At the same time, knowing him and interacting with him daily, he didn't do anything different. He's just a hockey player. That's what he does. He loves it. He loves the game, loves playing and loves his teammates. That's just an extension of what he is. What he tried to do at the end was so courageous. Just when you think he can't earn more respect, he does it. He wasn't the only guy that was playing through significant injury and pain."

On the success of the organization's affiliates in the AHL and ECHL in 2022-23

"It's really important. Trying to bring players up through a culture of winning and accountability has significant importance. You want the young players to know I'm coming not just to improve, not just to become a better player, but to win. Winning is everything. You have to learn. You have to go through a lot of these things. We've been blessed. Obviously the Everblades, [winning the Kelly Cup] two years in a row, have been just fantastic. We had NHL players come and say, 'I just want to play in Charlotte.' It's been so valuable for us [to have an AHL team like that]. The people in both cities have been wonderful partners. We're very blessed to have that."

On the Panthers becoming a destination for players around the NHL

"It's an interesting dynamic. There are players for whom the opportunity that we will have this year is literally invaluable. You want to come and play for us? Here's the hole. Here's our need. Someone's playing there. There's a pretty good bet that whoever plays in that spot is going to have success almost by default. … If you're playing, you're going to be playing with good players. I'm mindful that that could be where some players might be making a short-term financial sacrifice to fit in, but there's also a significant opportunity by coming and being a part of this."

On the steady leadership that Paul Maurice showed during his first season behind the bench with the Panthers

"I'm privy to day-to-day things that others aren't. You would have not been able to tell in our locker room -- October 15th, December 15th, January, February, March -- the difference in Paul Maurice. He was the same coach, the same guy. Nothing changed. When we were down, [it was] 'OK, we're down. We've go to make up some points in the standings. No problem.' It was that same leadership. I use emotional intelligence a lot when I talk about Paul, but he does a great job. It's actually paraphrasingand stealing from one of our players, but he physically smashed the guys in training camp, but never emotionally or mentally [beat] them up. Watching that occur on a daily basis through the season was a real blessing for me to be able to learn and to be able to see. … It's really the hard times. That's where you need the character. We had our third coach in three years, a completely new defensive system, and we're playing a 1-on-1 man system in our end. It took months for guys to figure out. It takes a while. Change is hard. He just maintained that even-keel through the whole thing and was the same person."

On the opportunity for prospects to earn roster spots in training camp later this summer

"One of the things that's very clear and not novel is that if you win it, you've probably got to have some prospects in the lineup. Just from a cap standpoint, right? You need to get some contribution from lower-salary guys. This year Anton [Lundell] was the $900,000 guy. There's going to be opportunity. It's all kind of a function of Piece A and Piece B. If we get this guy, can we take chances here? We're going to have to give some chances to some people. That part becomes exciting."

To view Zito's full availability, click HERE.