NHL | Don’t want to play for the Flyers? Get out of our sight! Philadelphia traded the star of the 20s

“Don’t you want to be a Flyer? You won’t,” Pennsylvania athletic director Keith Jones gushed as he explained why Philadelphia traded Gauthier for linebacker Jamie Drysdale and a 2025 second-round draft pick.

At the same time, the American striker was counted on in Pennsylvania as a key player for a number of subsequent seasons. “He looked at us at the draft and told us he was made to be a Flyer and he always wanted to play for the Flyers,” recalled general manager Danny Briére. “A few months later, he declared that he no longer wanted to be here,” he described the events of May last year.

But Philadelphia fans have wondered about some of Gauthier’s reactions before. While other youngsters kissed the logos of the clubs that had chosen them and told how they dreamed of playing for the very team whose jersey they had just worn, the Swedish-born youngster behaved a little differently.

“My favorite player was Sidney Crosby,” Gauthier named captain of the hated Pittsburgh in Philadelphia. It was the Penguins who took home a 4-1 win from the Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday night, so Flyers coach John Tortorella was really sour and sharp on Gauthier as well.

“We don’t want him. I can’t even tell Cutter from a hole in the wall,” the 65-year-old coach used an expression used overseas for a seedy bar. “I’m not too interested in talking about him. I’d rather talk about Jamie (Drysdale). He is the one coming to us,” he greeted the sixth pick of the 2020 draft in a peculiar way.

Photo: Adam Ihse, CTK/AP

Cutter Gauthier in the match against Switzerland

The Flyers intended to meet with Gauthier’s representatives during the junior championship to see if their client would decide to sign with Philadelphia after all, but were turned down. And so the management decided to proceed swiftly. “We wanted to make the trade as quickly as possible after the championships when it was of high value,” explained Jones.

When Gauthier shows up in Philadelphia in the future, he can count on it not being easy. “The kid hasn’t played a single game in the NHL yet, but he thinks it’s something extra to dictate where he starts. The Flyers did a great job keeping him and getting a great replacement in Drysdale,” said former club player Scott Hartnell. He spoke from the heart to Flyers fans.

2024-01-09 08:07:50
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