The Anaheim Ducks have limited cap space to retain star forward Cutter Gauthier. According to Puck Pedia, that number comes out to $9,073,395 for what can be spent.
The Ducks will need to get creative with player movement if they’re to retain the 22-year-old forward. He scored a team-high 69 points in 76 games last season. Moreover, Gauthier also led the team with 12 points in 12 playoff appearances this spring.
Anaheim would be losing a key part of its future. This is the case if the Ducks and Gauthier’s camp do not agree on a new contract.
According to NHL Network Radio contributor Paul Shaheen, Gauthier and his camp rejected an offer for $13 million over 4 years.
Should this bleed over into next month, then Gauthier may not see a deal come to fruition in time before his teammates hit the ice for training camp.
Last year, the Nashville Predators saw forward Luke Evangelista not attend the beginning of camp. His negotiations with the team bled into the first week of camp. As a result, he returned to Ontario to train with the London Knights.
Gauthier may be in a similar position; however, this is a much different situation given how pertinent the forward is to the Ducks’ long-term plan to become a threat in the Western Conference.
The clock is ticking on whether Gauthier would want to remain a Duck. Could his agent Kurt Overhart be permitted to seek a trade over the next few weeks? How the young talent of the Ducks has been handled may come back to bite the organization in the hand.
Ducks GM Pat Verbeek managing his young stars
It’s no secret that Verbeek is an old-school general manager who wants his players to earn their next deal. He did put off re-signing Leo Carlsson to a new deal in the middle of last season. He also delayed until before it began.
Instead of locking Carlsson in, the negotiations were put off too late, and the Philadelphia Flyers came in with a historical 5-year, $90 million offer sheet.
That offer sheet for Carlsson garnered a lot of attention on Verbeek and the Ducks at the time. Now, with Gauthier still unsigned, those same people are wondering what Anaheim will do with him.
Verbeek matched the largest offer sheet in NHL history, and both parties are happy. However, what does that say about how other restricted free agents may approach free agency in the future?
When trying to project what Gauthier may want on his next deal, there is a way this could get done if the forward wants a short-term deal. AFP Analytics projects that if Gauthier went that route, it could be a 3-year deal worth $18.9 million.
Former NHL video coach Steve Peters was a guest on Daily Faceoff this week and was asked about Gauthier and whether or not he’ll be on the ice for training camp.
“No, he’s not on the ice. This will be the first holdout in camp that we’ve seen in a while,” Peters said. “I think he’s digging his heels in, and unfortunately Anaheim is in a position where they’re backed up against the wall because of the contract they’ve given Leo Carlsson. The only way he’s in training camp on opening day is if he’s at another team.”
There are still a handful of rising prospects across the NHL who see what happened to Anaheim and wonder if that could be them.
Players like Adam Fantilli, Alexander Nikishin, Simon Edvinsson, and Kevin Korchinski are still in need of their next deals too.
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Ducks haven’t re-signed Gauthier as training camp looms for star forward