Panthers owner H. Wayne Huizenga had a great deal of experience in business and sports management, but did not have much specific experience with hockey. In early 1993, just months before the franchise would take the ice for the first time, he hired NHL legend Bobby Clarke as the franchise’s Vice President and General Manager. […]

Hockey was just a gleam in South Florida’s eye until Wayne Huizenga was awarded an NHL expansion franchise in 1992. Within four months, Huizenga had hired Bobby Clarke as Vice President and General Manager and Bill Torrey as President; the dream of hockey in South Florida was becoming a reality.