Kraken agree to sign Mackie Samoskevich to new deal after trade

As free agency opened Wednesday, the Seattle Kraken agreed to terms with a newly acquired forward and added a fighter. Other than that, it was a quiet morning.

“We looked at some scenarios that could help our group, but we were very cognizant of making sure we were bringing in players that could help our young players and not stunt their growth,” Kraken general manager Jason Botterill said.

The Kraken signed forward Curtis Douglas, formerly of the Vancouver Canucks, to a two-year deal with an average annual value of $1.25M. He is 6-foot-9 and 243 pounds, and fought during his very first NHL shift on Oct. 9, 2025. Douglas, 26, had two points (one goal) in 14 Canucks games last season after he was claimed off waivers from Tampa Bay.

Offense isn’t what he’s known for. He led the Lightning in penalty minutes (92) during his 29 games there. According to HockeyFights, he squared off 10 times last season, and dropped the gloves with some of the league’s top brawlers.

“It’s an element that we haven’t had here in the last couple of years,” Botterill said.

Hours earlier, Botterill announced that the team had agreed to terms with forward Mackie Samoskevich, whom they recently acquired in a trade with the Florida Panthers. Seattle gave up a first-round pick and conditional second-rounder for the 23-year-old, and he’ll kick off his Kraken tenure on a three-year deal with an AAV of $3.85M.

“We always knew he was going to be a part of our group,” Botterill said. “But to finally get the contract signed, get that behind us – just talking with him today, I know he’s very excited about moving forward with the summer.”

Samoskevich picked up 32 points (12 goals) in 77 regular-season games with Florida during the 2025-26 campaign. He reached personal bests in assists (20), points (32) and games played, but it was only his second full NHL season.

The 5-foot-11 forward, from Newtown, Connecticut, was drafted by the Panthers in the first round (24th overall) of the 2021 NHL draft. He spent two years at the University of Michigan and played with Seattle top-line center Matty Beniers in 2021-22.

Former Kraken alternate captain Jaden Schwartz quickly signed with the Colorado Avalanche on a three-year deal with a $3.25 AAV when free agency opened. He’ll reunite with original Kraken coach David Hakstol, who is an assistant coach in Colorado.

Seattle’s other unrestricted free agents, Jamie Oleksiak, Eeli Tolvanen and Matt Murray, hadn’t found landing spots as of Wednesday afternoon. Oleksiak and Schwartz have been with the franchise since the very first Kraken game on Oct. 12, 2021. There are only a handful of players from that Game 1 roster still around, nearly five years later. Jordan Eberle, Jared McCann, Vince Dunn, Adam Larsson, Haydn Fleury and Philipp Grubauer make up the list.

It was the quietest July 1 morning in recent memory, befitting a rather unimpressive free-agent group. The highlight was Sergei Bobrovsky signing a 3-year, $21M deal with Toronto. Bobrovsky helped the Panthers to back-to-back Stanley Cup titles in 2024 and 2025.

Defenseman Jacob Trouba, 32, signed a four-year contract with the San Jose Sharks with an AAV of $8.25 million. The Sharks also added defenseman Darnell Nurse via trade and signed winger Mason Marchment, who started the 2025-26 season with the Kraken. Marchment joined San Jose on a five-year, $33.75M deal.

Another former Kraken player, Oliver Bjorkstrand, left the Lightning to sign a one-year deal with the New York Rangers. The Rangers sent ex-Kraken defenseman Will Borgen to the Boston Bruins for a 2027 second-round pick and a 2028 conditional third-rounder.

Many of the big-name players re-signed before they ever hit the open market. The salary cap will reach $104 million next season, an increase of $8.5 million, which allowed teams to retain their players.

The Kraken wisely stayed above the fray. What was available and what they need didn’t align. Seattle is actively trying to lure a top-line forward, and that would arrive via trade.

“Most teams, ourselves included … that’s where you’re going to improve your team,” Botterill said. “Day 1 of free agency was (never) going to be a big area for us to really make a lot of adjustments.

“You’ve seen a lot of trades. I think there’s still going to be quite a few trades throughout the summer. We’re three-plus months before our first game, so we’ll keep looking at different opportunities to improve our group.”