The Seattle Kraken acquisition of talented young forward Mackie Samoskevich was four-dimensional chess-level genius.
The Kraken on Sunday traded the #25 pick in Friday’s NHL Draft (acquired from Tampa Bay), along with a 2027 2nd rounder to the Florida Panthers, in exchange for Samoskevich. When you read below the way Panthers players and coaches gush about the 5-foot-11, 180 pound winger, the deal will make perfect sense. But those won’t be the reasons it’s genius.
Think about it: the worst aspect of a late-first round draft choice is the time it’ll take for that player to make an impact at the NHL level.
The 18-year-old selected will usually play another season or two of junior or college hockey, before apprenticing as a pro at the AHL level. Then, if the team is lucky, three, four, or five years down the road, that pick is sufficiently seasoned to reach The Show.
The Kraken, who’ve missed the playoffs each of the past three seasons, don’t have that kind of time.
What Seattle needed was to hyper-accelerate their #25 pick. This trade accomplishes that. Samoskevich, selected almost at the same slot in the draft (#24 by the Panthers in 2021), has already completed two college seasons at Michigan and one full year in the AHL. Even better, at 23 he’s already a proven contributor on a Stanley Cup winner, whose best performances are still ahead.
For the price of a 2027 2nd round draft pick, the Kraken moved five years ahead on its late 1st round choice. One that’s guaranteed to be NHL-caliber, which not all bottom-of-the-1st-round picks turn out to be. That’s genius.
Seattle general manager Jason Botterill can’t consider the deal complete, however. Samoskevich is a restricted free agent. Evolving Hockey estimates that the winger’s new deal with Seattle will run in the neighborhood of four years at $4.7 million average annual value.
Kraken Looked Beyond Goal Totals
Samoskevich’s numbers in two full NHL seasons don’t scream “difference-maker.” He scored 15 goals in 2024-25, 12 goals last year.
Now, the rest of the story about those 12 goals. Through the games of Mar. 28, the native of Newtown, Conn. only had six. But oh, boy, did Samoskevich make up for lost time.
He scored six times in the final 10 games of Florida’s regular season. That included a four-game goal streak between Mar. 29 and Apr. 4, one each against the Rangers, Senators, Bruins and Penguins.
Five of his dozen goals ended up being game-winners, tied for the team lead. According to Natural Stat Trick, his expected goal total was 20+. That’s why Panthers coach Paul Maurice called him “snake-bit.”
“That’s the cool thing about the sport,” Samoskevich said at the time. “You get to try again the next night.”
His role with the Panthers was expanded last season, when both Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk (remember that name) were lost to injuries. He wasn’t fazed by moving up and down the Florida forward lines. “I’m getting touches with everybody, knowing what everyone likes to do and what their strengths are. As a younger guy, it’s definitely important to get that experience early on.”
Kraken Getting ‘A Great Pro’
Samoskevich had received 5-star reviews from Panthers players and coaches.
Seth Jones: “He’s on the puck all the time, great on the forecheck, hunting it around, uses his quickness and his ability to play with the puck to his advantage. He’s hungry around the net. He’s strong, and he knows how to use his body and get to the paint. He’s noticeable.”
Matthew Tkachuk: “His confidence with the puck, how strong he is on the puck, how well he skates. How much of an offensive talent he’s been throughout his whole life.”
Sam Bennett: “He wants to be an elite player in this league. You can see he’s got all the tools to do it. He’s a great player with a ton of potential.”
Aleksander Barkov: “His energy and how fast he is, how skilled he is, it’s great. He works really hard for it. The things he does on the ice, I would love to have his legs.”
Coach Paul Maurice: “I don’t have to be careful with him anymore. He understands what we’re doing. He’s handled every situation like a great pro.”
The above quotes were first published in the Miami Herald.
How Many Tkachuks Could The Panthers Tkachuk…
Given the enthusiastic praise, it’s fair to wonder why Florida would part with Samoskevich. The Panthers answered that question later on Sunday, trading the Tampa #25 pick and a boatload of others to Ottawa in exchange for Brady Tkachuk.
Unlike the Kraken, the Panthers are in win-now mode – as in, win a third championship to sit alongside back-to-back titles in 2024 and 2025. Uniting the Tkachuk brothers in south Florida puts them closer to their 4th trip to the Cup Final in the last five years.
Earlier Kraken:
— Kraken Sign Bobby McMann To A Six-Year Deal
