Frank Seravalli says one team keeps monitoring Connor Hellebuyck despite the complicated trade math

Connor Hellebuyck's trade request from the Winnipeg Jets has dragged into training camp, and one name keeps getting attached to it no matter how many times it gets shot down.

Florida Panthers general manager Bill Zito is once again being mentioned as a guy who could somehow pull this off, even when the math says otherwise.

Frank Seravalli touched on it during a recent appearance on the Jason Gregor Show, pointing out that Florida keeps popping up in these conversations because of Zito's track record of making moves that looked impossible on paper.

The situation only got more tense when Winnipeg suspended Hellebuyck without pay after he failed to report to training camp, a move that raised the stakes for everyone involved.

Florida already tried once. Reports have the Panthers offering Evan Rodrigues along with draft capital earlier this year, only for Winnipeg to pass.

Since then, Florida has settled its crease around Jacob Markstrom, and the cap sheet is tight enough that fitting Hellebuyck's $8.5 million hit looks like a puzzle with no obvious pieces left.

That is exactly the kind of situation Zito has found his way out of before, which is why nobody in the industry is ready to rule him out completely.

Seravalli's point was less about a specific trade package and more about pattern recognition.

Zito has built a roster full of moves that made people scratch their heads at the time, then somehow worked out.

Whether that history repeats itself with a three time Vezina winner remains to be seen.

Hellebuyck's deal runs through 2030-31 and carries a full no-movement clause, meaning nothing happens without his approval.

For now, Winnipeg still has him, and Florida is still watching.

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