Samsonov Moved to Panthers, Allen to Canes

The Florida Panthers did not stop dealing after moving Radek Dvorak and Dennis Wideman.

Instead of sitting on his hands, GM Dale Tallon continues to be active in the trade market by sending defenseman Bryan Allen to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for impending free agent Sergei Samsonov. This deal, unlike the previous two, is a clear salary dump as moving Allen to Carolina clears his $2.9 million cap hit off the books. Similar to the previous two deals, Tallon grabbed assets and cleared space regardless of the previous chemistry involved.

In Allen, the Canes receive a very solid two-way defender who will help the team down the stretch. He can eat up minutes on the blue line as he averaged over 19 minutes of ice time. Allen is also a good shot-blocker and should provide a shut down element to the third defensive pairing. After the Canes traded away Ian White last week they needed another NHL caliber defender as Brett Carson simply did not fit the role.

On the other hand, Samsonov will round out his season with the Rochester Americans Florida Panthers.

At numerous points in the year, the Russian forward paired with Eric Staal but showed very little offensively — as witnessed by his 10 goals and 26 points through 58 games. After revitalizing his career in Carolina, Samsonov once again seems uninspired and could have played his way off yet another NHL roster. As the team continues to get younger, a player like Zach Boychuk or Jerome Samson would probably play at a similar level while helping the Canes by further developing into a player.

At first glance, this trade seems to be one sided. When considering it gives the Cats even more cap space for next season — $39,109,166 million projected — it becomes yet another good hockey deal. Considering Eric Staal is healthy and will return to the lineup, the Canes only needed to fill their roster with depth and they certainly addressed that need.

In summary… (line changes)

Hurricanes: Staal gets back into the lineup, essentially taking Samsonov’s spot. Allen replaces Carson, who replaced White. Derek Joslin probably sits on the sidelines or alternates in for Jay Harrison. Projected lines updated, click here.
Panthers: Samsonov could kick Kenndal McArdle or Hugh Jessiman out of the lineup. The club also needs to create space for Niclas Bergfors and Patrick Rissmiller.

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