– Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has agreed to terms with forward Jerome Samson (jeh-ROHM SAM-soh) on a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will pay Samson $600,000 on the NHL level or $105,000 on the American Hockey League (AHL) level, with a guarantee of at least $175,000.

Samson, 24, split the 2011-12 season between the Hurricanes and the team’s top minor-league affiliate, the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers. The Greenfield Park, Que., native scored his first NHL goal on Jan. 10 against Philadelphia, and went on to score two goals and earn three assists (5 points) in 16 NHL games. Samson (6’0”, 195 lbs.) ranked second among Checkers skaters with 20 goals in 2011-12, despite playing in just 57 of the team’s 80 games. He was named to the 2012 AHL All-Star Classic, but was unable to participate due to being on NHL recall with the Hurricanes.

Originally signed as an undrafted free agent in July 2007, Samson has scored two goals and earned seven assists in 46 career NHL regular-season games with the Hurricanes. He has totaled 126 goals and 136 assists (262 points) in 319 career AHL games with Albany and Charlotte, and has scored at least 20 goals in all five of his AHL seasons. Prior to turning professional, Samson tallied 70 goals and 98 assists (168 points) in 196 regular-season games with Moncton and Val-d’Or of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), helping Moncton capture the QMJHL title in 2006.