Samorukov was signed by the Penguins to a one-year contract worth $775,000 a few days before American Thanksgiving, and he had a very interesting way of explaining how he got his start with the Penguins. Samorukov compared his signing to that of winning the lottery.
Samorukov did not appear in a single game with the Penguins last season, instead spending the entire year in the AHL with the Penguins affiliate team, the WIlkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, where he picked up 5 goals and 10 assists in 64 games. Perhaps not playing a single minute with Pittsburgh is the reason for his swift departure.
