William Cutter Ruel Gauthier[1] (born January 19, 2004) is a Swedish-born American professional ice hockey player for the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted fifth overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2022 NHL entry draft.[2][3]
| Cutter Gauthier | |||
|---|---|---|---|
_by_Sandro_Halank%E2%80%93040.jpg) Gauthier with Team USA in 2023 | |||
| Born |
January 19, 2004 Skellefteå, Sweden | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 189 lb (86 kg; 13 st 7 lb) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| NHL team | Anaheim Ducks | ||
| National team |
 United States | ||
| NHL draft |
5th overall, 2022 Philadelphia Flyers | ||
| Playing career | 2023–present | ||
Personal life
editGauthier is the son of Canadian former professional goaltender Sean Gauthier, whose career included a brief appearance with the San Jose Sharks. He was born during his father's playing stint in Sweden.[4] Growing up, Gauthier's favorite team was the Pittsburgh Penguins[5] and his favorite player was Penguins' captain Sidney Crosby.[6]
Playing career
editGauthier competed at the 2022 BioSteel All-American Game.[7]
In his Freshman season at Boston College, he was the Eagles' leading point and goal scorer, with 16 goals and 21 assists for 37 points in 32 games. Gauthier earned All-Rookie team and Third-Team All-Star honors in Hockey East.[8][9]
On January 8, 2024, Gauthier's NHL rights were traded to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Jamie Drysdale and a 2025 second-round draft pick.[10] Shortly after the trade announcement, it was reported that Gauthier had refused to sign with the Flyers,[11][12] and Gauthier had stated in an interview the previous month that he did not think being drafted by the Flyers was going to "roll over well," because his favorite team as a child was the rival Pittsburgh Penguins.[5] Later that evening, in response to questions from the press on the matter, Flyers management confirmed that Gauthier had informed the team in May 2023, that he did not intend on signing with the Flyers; although the franchise had waited in hopes that Gauthier would change his mind, the trade was spurred after Gauthier and his representatives had repeatedly refused or ignored Flyers management attempts to contact him for the past few months, including skipping on the team's summer development camp.[13][14] Gauthier received death threats after the trade amid speculation that his decision was related to Flyers head coach John Tortorella or former Flyer Kevin Hayes, but he denied those rumors and stated that it was a "private matter."[15]
At the conclusion of his sophomore season, having led the NCAA with 38 goals and tying the Eagles' record for most goals in a single season in program history, Gauthier ended his collegiate career in signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks on April 14, 2024.[16] Gauthier recorded his first NHL goal on November 15, 2024, beating Alex Lyon of the Detroit Red Wings, boosting his team in a 6-4 victory.[17]
International play
edit| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Representing United States
| ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Junior Championships | ||
 |
2024 Sweden | |
 |
2023 Canada | |
| World U18 Championships | ||
 |
2022 Germany | |
Gauthier represented the United States at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics and earned a silver medal.[18] He was then selected to represent the United States at the 2022 IIHF World U18 Championships, where he recorded three goals and six assists in six games and earned a silver medal.[19]
On December 12, 2022, Gauthier was named to the United States junior team to compete at the 2023 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.[20]
On December 16, 2023, he was again named to junior team's roster to compete at the 2024 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships and was named alternate captain of the gold medal-winning team.[21] He led the team in scoring, recording two goals and ten assists in seven games, tying Czech player Jiří Kulich for top scorer in the tournament.[22] He was named the best forward in the directorate awards.[23]
Playing style
editGauthier models his game after Mark Scheifele, Auston Matthews, and Pierre-Luc Dubois.[24]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2020–21 | U.S. National Development Team | USHL | 45 | 20 | 17 | 37 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | U.S. National Development Team | USHL | 54 | 34 | 31 | 65 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2022–23 | Boston College | HE | 32 | 16 | 21 | 37 | 37 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2023–24 | Boston College | HE | 41 | 38 | 27 | 65 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2023–24 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
International
edit| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | United States | U18 | 
|
6 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 6 | |
| 2023 | United States | WJC | 
|
7 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 2 | |
| 2023 | United States | WC | 4th | 10 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2024 | United States | WJC | 
|
7 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 4 | |
| Junior totals | 20 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 12 | ||||
| Senior totals | 10 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 2 | ||||
Awards and honors
edit| Award | Year | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| College | ||
| Hockey East All-Rookie Team | 2023 | [25] |
| All-Hockey East Third Team | ||
| All-Hockey East First Team | 2024 | [26] |
| AHCA East First Team All-American | [27] | |
| International | ||
| WJC best forward | 2024 | [23] |
References
edit- ^ "Why would the Flyers trade one of their top prospects? Inside the Cutter Gauthier trade". ESPN.com. January 9, 2024. Retrieved January 19, 2024.
- ^ Little, Devin (July 8, 2022). "Philadelphia Flyers Draft Cutter Gauthier 5th Overall". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
- ^ "Cutter Gauthier at eliteprospects.com". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
- ^ "Cutter Gauthier Follows Father's Advice On The Ice". usahockeyntdp.com. August 26, 2021. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
- ^ a b @eliteprospectshockey (December 19, 2023). "Get To Know Team USA's 2024 World Juniors Team 👀 from how they describe their game, to their favourite NHL players and teams 🔥 • #NHL #Hockey #USA #USAHockey #WorldJuniors #WJC #2024WJC #2024WorldJuniors #IIHFHockey #GoJetsGo #GoHabsGo #LetsGoFlyers #NJDevils #GoBolts #ALLCAPS". Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Instagram.
- ^ "NHL Draft 2022 Prospect Profile: Cutter Gauthier". WKBW.com. July 5, 2022. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
- ^ Robinson, Tom (January 15, 2022). "Top U.S. Prospects Ready to Display Their Talents in BioSteel All-American Game". biosteelallamericangame.com. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
- ^ "Hockey East Names 2022-23 Pro Ambitions All-Rookie Team". Hockey East Association. March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
- ^ "Hockey East Names 2022-23 Men's All-Star Teams". Hockey East Association. March 10, 2023. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
- ^ "TRADE: Flyers acquire Jamie Drysdale and a 2nd round selection in the 2025 NHL Draft from Anaheim in exchange for Cutter Gauthier". NHL.com. Philadelphia Flyers. January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
- ^ Quigley, Ryan (January 8, 2024). "Flyers trade Cutter Gauthier as reports surface of prospect's refusal to sign". broadstreethockey.com. Broad Street Hockey. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
- ^ Ignudo, Tom (January 8, 2024). "Philadelphia Flyers trade former first-round pick Cutter Gauthier to Anaheim Ducks". cbsnews.com. CBS News. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
- ^ Kurz, Kevin (January 8, 2024). "Top prospect Cutter Gauthier didn't want to be a Flyer. Now he won't be". The Athletic. The New York Times. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
- ^ Douglas, Kayla (January 8, 2024). "GM Briere: Gauthier told us he 'didn't want to be a Flyer'". TheScore. Score Media and Gaming. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
- ^ Staff, TSN (January 11, 2024). "Gauthier speaks on trade fallout: 'A 19-year-old kid getting a lot of death threats'". TSN. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
- ^ "Ducks sign Gauthier to entry-level contract". Anaheim Ducks. April 14, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- ^ "Gauthier gets 1st goal, Ducks score 4 in 3rd to rally past Red Wings | NHL.com". www.nhl.com. November 16, 2024. Retrieved November 16, 2024.
- ^ Scheder-Bieschin, Gabrielle (January 22, 2020). "Men's Ice Hockey Team Secures Silver At Youth Olympic Games". teamusa.org. Archived from the original on March 17, 2020. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
- ^ Scheder-Baracchini, Peter (May 4, 2022). "5 Prospects Who Improved Draft Stock at World U18 Championship". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
- ^ Kimelman, Adam (December 12, 2022). "2023 World Junior Championship rosters". NHL.com. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
- ^ Spiegel, Jackie (December 26, 2023). "Five things to know about World Juniors from Cutter Gauthier to Matvei Michkov". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- ^ "Scoring Leaders".
- ^ a b Podnieks, Andrew (January 5, 2024). "Lekkerimaki named MVP". IIHF. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- ^ "Flyers Mic'd Up: Cutter Gauthier". Philadelphia Flyers. July 25, 2022. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
- ^ "Hockey East names 2022-23 Pro Ambitions All-Rookie Team". Hockey East. March 8, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
- ^ "HOCKEY EAST NAMES 2023-24 MEN'S ALL-STAR TEAMS". Hockey East. March 15, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
- ^ "Top 25 men's college hockey players earn distinction as CCM/AHCA Hockey All-Americans for 2023-24 season". USCHO.com. April 12, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database