Panthers Just Turned a Depth Forward Into Draft Gold. Here’s What It Means.

The Florida Panthers and Seattle Kraken did a little business on Sunday, and if you blinked you might have missed why it matters. Mackie Samoskevich is heading to Seattle. The Panthers get back a first-round pick — the 25th overall — plus a second-rounder in 2027. On paper, it looks like Florida just traded a guy they drafted at 24 for basically the same slot a few years later, with a bonus pick thrown in. But the real story is what this opens up.

Samoskevich, 23, was a first-round pick out of the 2021 draft. He broke into the NHL in 2023 and played a full season in 2024-25, putting up 31 points in the regular season and adding a playoff point during Florida’s Stanley Cup defense. Last year he bumped that to a career-high 32 points, but the Panthers missed the postseason entirely. He turns 24 in November. Decent player. Not a star. But a useful bottom-six forward who was developing inside one of the league’s best systems.

So why trade him now? Money, basically. His entry-level contract is up. He needs a new deal. And the Panthers are cap-crunched, with expensive talent stacked across the roster. Bill Zito saw a chance to reset the asset and took it. That’s just smart management when you’re up against the cap ceiling.

What the Panthers gained

The 25th pick originally belonged to Tampa Bay. Seattle grabbed it in the Oliver Bjorkstrand deal at the 2025 trade deadline. Now it’s Florida’s. That pick, plus the 2027 second-rounder, gives Zito ammo. He could use those picks on prospects. Or he could package them for an impact player. The speculation is already flying: Dylan Larkin reportedly has Florida on his approved trade list. And if Connor Hellebuyck becomes available, you’d have to think the Panthers are making a call. This trade didn’t just open cap space. It opened a door.

Grade for Florida? Solid A. There’s always a risk the 25th pick turns into nothing, but that’s a risk you take when your roster is full of guys making real money. The Panthers turned a depth forward they developed into two picks and cap flexibility. That’s a win at the table.

The Kraken’s bet on upside

Seattle is heading into year six as a franchise and they’ve won exactly one playoff round. Vegas went to three Stanley Cup Finals in their first nine years. The “new team” excuse is getting old in the Pacific Northwest. The Kraken haven’t developed any of their own draft picks into stars yet. Matty Beniers took a step back last season. They need young forwards who can push the group forward, and Samoskevich fits that profile.

But here’s the thing. They gave up the 25th overall pick for a guy who has never scored more than 15 goals in a season. And they have to sign him to a new contract starting July 1, which just got more expensive because of the trade. That’s a lot to pay for a middle-six forward with 63 career points. The Kraken do have an extra first-rounder in 2027 from the Bjorkstrand trade, so it’s not like they emptied the cupboard. But the pressure is on Samoskevich to take an offensive step. Seattle needs him to be more than he’s been so far.

Grade for Seattle: B+. They identified a need and filled it with a young player. But they overpaid. Plain and simple. The upside is real, but the price tag was steep.