While most talk surrounding the Florida Panthers has been centered around their veteran pending UFAs, a new report from Elliotte Friedman links the Seattle Kraken with Mackie Samoskevich.
Although many insiders believe the Florida Panthers are selling off pending UFAs, a recent report from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggests there are other options.
In his recent trade deadline update, Friedman reports that the Seattle Kraken are interested in acquiring winger Mackie Samoskevich.
“Seattle has interest in Florida’s Mackie Samoskevich,” said Friedman. “Good young player, but Panthers will make them pay a high price. Shane Wright wouldn’t move in that trade, but they continue to discuss him for either an elite scorer or a younger talent that needs a change.”
It’s been a difficult offensive year for Samoskevich, who has scored just six goals and 21 points in 60 games this season. His shooting percentage is a woeful 4.7 percent this season, despite firing 2.15 shots per game, compared to 1.8 in his rookie season.
Despite everything, the development process for Samoskevich has been in place. On multiple occasions, coach Paul Maurice has praised the 23-year-old’s attentiveness to the defensive side of the puck as well as his ability to use his speed to create offensive chances.
Although the production hasn’t been apparent, Samoskevich is going to be an important part of the Panthers’ future, and a high price tag needs to be placed on him.
If there were a team that had the assets to make a deal work, it would be the Kraken. Seattle owns multiple first-round picks in the next two NHL drafts, as well as five second-round picks. They also have a deep prospect pool.
Samoskevich and Kraken No. 1 center Matty Beniers were teammates at the University of Michigan, and they could rekindle their chemistry if they were paired with one another in Seattle.
Samoskevich will become an RFA at the conclusion of the 2025-26 season, due for a contract extension. The former 21st overall pick in the 2021 NHL draft is arbitration eligible.
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