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Greg Wyshynski, ESPN
The Philadelphia Flyers traded forward Cutter Gauthier to the Anaheim Ducks on Monday night in exchange for defenseman Jamie Drysdale and a second-round selection in the 2025 NHL draft.
It was a straightforward transaction. How the Flyers ended up dealing one of their top prospects is a bit more complicated — and contentious.
Let’s piece together some answers to the many burning questions that persist after Monday’s shocking trade.
Who is Cutter Gauthier?
Let’s start with his almost-too-awesome-for-hockey name.
Gauthier’s father, Sean, finished his pro hockey career playing for Skelleftea in Sweden. That’s where Cutter Gauthier was born. He said his grandmother found the word “Cutter” in a Swedish cookbook, and it stuck with his parents. His full name is William Cutter Ruel Gauthier. But he goes by Cutter. Who wouldn’t?
In 2022, Gauthier was one of the most highly touted forward prospects in the NHL draft, coming from the U.S. National Development Team. At 6-foot-2, he can play all three forward positions and was projected to be an effective goal-scorer. But he was also praised for his defensive acumen.
The Flyers selected the 18-year-old fifth overall.
Gauthier played the 2022-23 season for Boston College, with 37 points in 32 games, and has 23 points in 17 games for the Eagles this season. He most recently helped the U.S. capture world junior tournament gold in Sweden, leading the team with 12 points in seven games.
That tournament was a tantalizing performance for Flyers fans, who watched one of their franchise cornerstones of the future excel on the international stage.
Little did they know that Gauthier had already decided he wasn’t going to be part of the Flyers’ future.
Why was Cutter Gauthier traded?
In 2022, Gauthier was excited to hear his name called as the fifth overall pick.
“I’m extremely excited that the Philadelphia Flyers were the team to call it,” he told the media at the draft in Montreal.
Gauthier couldn’t have been more excited to join the Flyers.
“He looked at us at the draft and told us that he was built to be a Flyer. Wanted to be a Flyer,” Philadelphia GM Danny Briere said. “A few months later, he told us that he didn’t want to be a Flyer.”
The first sign of trouble between Gauthier and the Flyers was when he didn’t attend the team’s development camp this past summer.
Briere told the Philadelphia Inquirer that Gauthier had declined the invitation. Gauthier told NHL.com that he needed to rest up after participating in the IIHF world championships — where he scored seven goals in 10 games — and wanted to spend time with his family. Briere eventually said that the absence was due to Gauthier’s time at worlds and “we’re not too worried about that.”
That’s what Briere said to the public. Privately, the Flyers had come to understand that Gauthier didn’t want to be a part of their organization.
Comcast Spectacor chairman Dan Hilferty said the team spoke with Gauthier’s representatives and his parents.
“By the start of the season, his mind was made up that he didn’t want to be in Philadelphia,” Hilferty said in an interview on the Snow The Goalie podcast on Monday.
This shocked Briere, given the prospect’s positive reaction to having been drafted by the team. But Gauthier was far from the first college prospect to declare he didn’t want to play for the team that drafted him. Players like Adam Fox and Jimmy Vesey of the New York Rangers and Kevin Hayes of the St. Louis Blues had previously leveraged collective bargaining agreement rules that give NCAA players more control over their pro destinations than other prospects.
Still, Briere had hope. If Gauthier had a change of heart about the Flyers once, perhaps he could have another one. So Briere kept the situation quiet, lest Flyers fans believe Gauthier had committed a mortal sin: expressing any trepidation about playing in Philadelphia.
“The reason we didn’t want to say anything wasn’t to hide anything from our great fans. It was to try and protect the kid. We were hoping that he would change his mind,” the general manager said. “We said we have to protect him, because if he changes his mind again then it’s out there that he doesn’t want to play [in Philadelphia] which is going to be tough for him to put the uniform on.”
Fast forward to the world junior tournament. Briere and Flyers president Keith Jones were in Sweden, hoping to speak with Gauthier and make another pitch about being part of the team’s future.
“He refused to talk to us,” Briere said.
At that point, the wheels started turning on a trade, especially with Gauthier having such a strong tournament.
Briere spoke with well over a dozen teams, who remarkably kept the negotiations quiet. Reading between the lines on Hilferty’s podcast interview, it appears the Flyers kept Gauthier’s refusal to play in Philadelphia as quiet as possible among trade partners.
“I have to thank all the other teams that were involved, who kept it secret. In case he changed his mind again,” Briere said Monday.
The Ducks stepped up with a significant offer: Drysdale, a 21-year-old defenseman who was considered a big part of their future, along with a second-round pick in 2025, which should be quite high, given the Ducks’ rebuild.
The trade was announced during the Flyers’ 4-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday night.
Why didn’t Cutter Gauthier want to play for the Flyers?
The Flyers would like to know, too.
“We never got an answer. I don’t know much more than that,” Briere said. “He didn’t want to be a Flyer. Didn’t want to be in Philadelphia.”
Hilferty thought hard about the situation last summer, when he became the Flyers’ CEO.
“Was it something about the leadership team? Was it coaching?” he said. “What became clear is that we don’t know the clear-cut answer, to this day.”
Absent anything concrete, fans were left to speculate based on the crumbs Gauthier had left in his interviews since being drafted — such as his favorite team.
“The Pittsburgh Penguins were definitely my favorite team growing up,” Gauthier said on a USA Hockey video.
With that theory being a little too hockey kayfabe, what about having to meet the demands of coach John Tortorella?
Gauthier seemed fond of him, actually. He told the Empty Netters podcast eight months ago that he shook Torts’ hand at an earlier Flyers development camp and told him that he looked forward to playing for him.
Gauthier’s motivations are a mystery.
He even loved the jerseys.
“It’s awesome. It’s bright orange, so it’s awesome. You definitely stand out,” Gauthier said on draft day.
Then again, based on his new NHL team, maybe the dude just likes orange.
What was the Flyers’ reaction to this trade?
Measured and respectful.
Just kidding.
“I don’t really feel bad for Cutter when he comes to Philadelphia. It’s gonna be a rough ride here and he earned it,” Hilferty said. “Because you know what, we’re Philadelphians and we want people who want to be here with us.”
Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim, coming off Monday night’s loss, said the team was aware of Gauthier’s decision.
“If somebody doesn’t want to be here, we’re happy to have a guy that does,” he said. “The only thing I had heard was the development [camp], and him not wanting to be there. Obviously, as a player in this locker room, that was something that stayed with us. For as long as I know, you show up to development camp whether you skate or not. If he doesn’t want to be here, we’re happy to move on.”
Tortorella was asked about Gauthier not wanting to play in Philadelphia.
“Then we don’t want you,” he said. “I don’t know Cutter from a hole in the wall. I’m not too interested in talking about him. I’d rather talk about Jamie. He’s the guy coming here.”
Torts clearly didn’t remember the handshake.
Why was Jamie Drysdale traded by the Ducks?
Anaheim GM Pat Verbeek, speaking on the Duck Streams podcast, said it was a difficult decision to trade Drysdale, who was the sixth overall pick in the 2020 draft. But he had identified goal-scoring as a critical need for their rebuild, something Gauthier should theoretically provide.
Drysdale and the Ducks had a contentious offseason, grinding out a contract negotiation until Oct. 5, when they agreed to a three-year, $6.9 million bridge contract for the restricted free agent. He had been limited to just eight games in 2022-23 due to injury. He had 123 games over four seasons in his career, with 45 points and a minus-43.
Verbeek said the contract negotiation didn’t factor into the trade.
The Ducks traded from a position of strength. While Drysdale was an important prospect, Anaheim has other impressive young defensemen such as Pavel Mintyukov and Olen Zellweger in its system.
“For me, this is a real hockey trade,” Verbeek said. “They were looking for a top-four defenseman. I was looking for a top-six forward.”
The Ducks GM said he spoke with Drysdale on Monday when the trade was made and told him the Flyers were a great opportunity for him.
“Philadelphia wanted you. That says a lot,” Verbeek said.
Briere said when Drysdale’s name was floated, the focus quickly turned to getting the deal done. As a 21-year-old right-handed defenseman who can move the puck and quarterback the power play, Drysdale was an easy sell.
“When Jamie’s name came up, this was a pretty special player. They don’t come very often,” the Flyers GM said.
Briere cautioned that there will be an “adjustment period” for Drysdale, going from the Ducks’ style of play to Tortorella’s.
“We watched a lot of tape on him. We’re really excited about the opportunity,” Tortorella said. “The kid’s head is spinning right now. It’s his first time at this. But this is a really good deal for us.”
What’s the takeaway from all of this?
The age of player empowerment continues in the NHL.
The Flyers are one of the NHL’s most prominent organizations in a vibrant media market. It’s a franchise that attracts players, rather than one that players actively avoid. Not only did an NHL prospect flex his leverage to escape Philadelphia, but he also did so knowing that fans there will never forget it. The reception Cutter Gauthier is going to get in Philadelphia as a member of the Ducks is going to make John Tavares‘ returns to Long Island look like a family reunion by comparison.
Knowing that, Gauthier forced his way out and ended up on a team with an impressive assemblage of young talent: Leo Carlsson, Mason McTavish, Trevor Zegras and more on the way.
But the other takeaway is that Flyers fans should know their history. It’s not like they haven’t been on the other side of a top prospect refusing to play for the team that drafted him. If history showed us anything, it’s the team trading that player that can benefit the most. Just count the Stanley Cup banners in Denver in the years following the Eric Lindros trade.