A day after pulling off the deal that brought Jones in from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for goaltender Spencer Knight, Panthers general manager and hockey operations president Bill Zito said the Stanley Cup champions took their time before finally executing the move and agreeing to bring on Jones — who has five years left on a big-money contract.

The NHL trade deadline is less than a week away, and the market is starting to heat up. The Florida Panthers made a move to bolster their blue line by acquiring defenseman Seth Jones from the Chicago Blackhawks,