Flyers prospect Cutter Gauthier refused to meet team before trade to Ducks
Cutter Gauthier won’t make it to Philadelphia — and didn’t even want to.
Gauthier was traded by the Flyers to the Ducks on Monday night after the prospect told the team that drafted him that he didn’t want to play for Philadelphia, hockey insider Frank Seravalli reported.
The Flyers were able to pick up defenseman Jamie Drysdale and a 2025 second-round draft pick as part of the deal.
General manager Danny Briere confirmed that Gauthier had told the Flyers he didn’t want to play for the team and called the trade “a long time coming.”
The Flyers had drafted Gauthier with the No. 5 overall pick in 2022 and at first, he had seemed excited about coming to the “City of Brotherly Love,” but his tune changed.
Briere was unsure what changed.
“It has been going on for a while,” Briere told reporters Monday night, per NBC Sports Philadelphia. “We tried to give him space, we tried to get in touch with him many times. They would not communicate.
“At some point, we have to make a decision. We thought with what happened just a few days ago, this was our time to probably get the highest value.”
The Flyers’ brain trust of Briere and president of hockey operations Keith Jones even made the trip to Sweden to try and speak with Gauthier at the IIHF World Junior Championship, but according to multiple reports, he refused to speak with them.
“I feel bad for Cutter … well I don’t really feel bad for Cutter when he comes to Philadelphia,” Flyers chairman and CEO Daniel Hilferty said. “It’s gonna be a rough ride here and he earned it. We’re Philadelphians and we want people who want to be here with us.”
That led Philadelphia to start talking with 18-20 teams that Gauthier, who notched two goals and a tournament-leading 12 points in seven games, would sign with, Seravalli reported.
The 19-year-old had has 13 goals and 23 points in 17 games for Boston College this season.
