Bill Zito Optimistic He Can Bring His Top Three Free Agents Back
Florida Panthers General Manager Bill Zito joined James Duthie, Jamie McLennan, and Darren Dreger on the TSN Panel after his team won the Stanley Cup for the second year in a row. He was asked about Brad Marchand, Sam Bennett, and Aaron Ekblad and if he could bring all of them back.
NHL Rumors: Florida Panthers, and the Toronto Maple Leafs
NHLRumors.com Transcriptions
James Duthie: “The last thing you want me to ask you. You can tell me to get lost, but you’ve got three big-name free agents. How quickly do you get into that? Can you bring, possibly them all back? Can you bring two out of three back?”
Bill Zito: “I think we can bring them all back.”
Duthie: “Really? with sizable hometown discounts?”
Zito: “Let’s just leave it at that.”
While being interviewed on the ice, when asked about bringing Marchand, he joked, “I bought a Dairy Queen.”
NHLRumors.com Note: There is no doubt, Zito wants all three players back. It will be challenging to accomplish all three with the current salary cap, even with its increase. It sure sounds like Bennett will be staying. Marchand and Ekblad would have to take hometown discounts to stay in Florida. However, Ekblad bleeds for the Florida Panthers and didn’t quite say that far by saying he will take less to stay, but being a homegrown guy has value in his eyes.
Matthew Tkachuk Hopes His Teammates Stay, But Understands It Is a Business
Matthew Tkachuk joined James Duthie, Jamie McLennan, and Darren Dreger on the TSN Panel after his team won the Stanley Cup for the second year in a row. He was asked to comment on Zito’s comments, and if it sounded like music to his ear, his GM wanted to bring all the guys back.
NHL Rumors: Will Brad Marchand Hit the Open Market, or Take Less to Remain in Florida?
NHLRumors.com Transcriptions
Darren Dreger: “Matthew, we’ll let you enjoy this Stanley Cup championship, but a bit of business because your general manager, Billy Zito joined us earlier, and he said he thinks there’s a way that they can keep (Sam) Bennett, (Brad) Marchand and Aaron Ekblad. I mean, all three unrestricted free agents, that sound has to be music to your ears, and looking for three in a row?”
Matthew Tkachuk: “Yeah. I mean, that’s music to my ears. I mean, Billy, Billy probably can’t stand me, because I’m the guy that tells those guys, like, you better make as much as you possibly can, whether that’s here or somewhere else. And like, that’s, I’m a big believer, like, I’m, all player guy like, you better go out there and get that brinks truck backed up, right in there, right in your front yard.
So I’m so happy for those guys. How, how can you picture a better contract here for those three? So very happy for those guys, whatever ends up happening, but for myself, being here for hopefully, many, many, many, many more years. Obviously, I’d love for them to stay, but it’s more than that, and I hope that whatever decision they make, they’re happy with it.”
NHLRumors.com Note: Tkachuk said he is a player guy and wants his guys to get the most they can. However, it seems likely that Bennett will return at a reasonable cost. The other guys might be hitting it big on the open market. The key is that Tkachuk wants those guys to be happy with whatever decision they end up making.
NHL Rumors: Edmonton Oilers; Connor McDavid and Evan Bouchard
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? It’s new, and we’re just getting started. Rumor roundups and hot topics from around the league.
