- Seattle reportedly offered Artemi Panarin a four-year deal worth more than $14 million per season, topping Leon Draisaitl’s cap hit
- The Kraken also pitched Jason Robertson eight years at roughly $15 million through a sign-and-trade with Dallas
- Read below for why both stars said no and what it says about Seattle’s pitch
The Seattle Kraken get knocked for having no star power. It turns out they have been swinging for it.
A new @GinoHard_ graphic lays out the two biggest offers Seattle has put on the table, more than $14 million a year for Artemi Panarin and around $15 million for Jason Robertson, and both stars ended up somewhere else:
Start with Panarin. Elliotte Friedman reported the Kraken offered the winger a four-year contract with an average annual value north of $14 million, a number that would have topped Leon Draisaitl’s $14 million cap hit.
Panarin wanted California, not the Pacific Northwest. He got his wish on February 4, when the Rangers traded him to the Kings and he signed a two-year extension worth $11 million per season. That is less annual money than Seattle offered.
Friedman laid out the LA terms:
Robertson was the bigger swing. Friedman reported in June that Seattle offered the Dallas winger eight years at roughly $15 million per season, more than double what any current Kraken player makes.
Dallas had even signed off on a sign-and-trade that would have sent Seattle’s own No. 7 overall pick back to the Stars. Then Robertson said no. He re-signed with Dallas on a one-year, $12 million deal instead, and the whole framework fell apart.
LeBrun had the fallout:
So Seattle keeps missing, but not for lack of trying. GM Jason Botterill has the money and the willingness to go big. He just cannot get the yes.
That is the real story of Seattle’s quiet offseason. The Kraken re-signed Bobby McMann and traded for Mackie Samoskevich, small stuff next to $56 million for Panarin or $120 million for Robertson. The cap space is there. The star, so far, is not.
