The Seattle Kraken acquired restricted free agent forward Mackie Samoskevich in a trade with the Florida Panthers in exchange for the No. 25 pick in next week’s NHL Draft and a conditional second-round pick in 2027, it was announced Sunday.
Samoskevich, 23, registered 12 goals and 32 points in 77 games with the Florida Panthers last season.
The 5-foot-11 winger is coming off a one-year, $775,000 contract. Samoskevich helped the Panthers to their second of back-to-back Stanley Cup titles in 2025.
General manager Jason Botterill said in a story posted to NHL.com Sunday that was a factor in bringing Samoskevich in.
“For me, there’s the fact that, at such a young age, he’s been able to win a Stanley Cup already, and he’s been a part of a very successful organization in Florida,” Botterill said.
“I just love his age, love his speed and I love his shot. So, I think he’ll fit in very well with the style of play that we’re trying to play on an everyday basis here.”
Samoskevich was also a teammate of Kraken forward Matty Beniers at the University of Michigan.
“You’re just trying to give options to [coach] Lane [Lambert] and the coaching staff,” Botterill said to NHL.com. “We pride ourselves on being a four-line team, so I’ll leave it up to Lane and the coaching staff on where Mackie fits into the mix and stuff. But we think that – especially with that right shot – we’ve talked a lot about getting more pucks to the net, more of a shooter mentality, and that’s certainly what Mackie brings.”
Drafted 24th overall by the Panthers in 2021, Samoskevich has 27 goals and 63 points in 156 career games.
The Newtown, Conn., native represented the United States at the 2022 World Juniors in a fifth-place finish.
