Confirmed with Link: [ANA/PHI] Cutter Gauthier for Jamie Drysdale and 2025 2nd round pick

[Don Nachbaur 26]

Some media jackhole reported that Kevin Hayes "had his fingerprints all over" the whole Cutter asking to be traded thing

Dude looks like Jabba the Hut. And you know he smells salami.

 

[GermanRocket7]

The most hilarious part is, Gauthier actually did Philly a massive favour by saying very early on he's not going to sign, enabling them to make a good hockey trade and add a core piece to their roster.

Like yeah it sucks, but you traded away a potential 1st line forward for a potential top pairing defenceman, it's hardly the end of the world.

I'm sure many teams wish they had the opportunity Philly had when it came to a top prospect not wanting to sign.

Yeah, imagine we would have gotten anything close to fair market value for Judas back in the day, before he joined the Oilers (of all teams). He was one of the most highly-touted defensemen prospects in the league, and we could have probably gotten a player similar to an Eberle for him at that point in time. That may or may not have put us over the hump in 2015.

 

[JAHV]

And yet, not one decent Ducks podcast out there. Hell, there's only one decent NHL podcast.

To each his own, of course, but I enjoy the 32 Thoughts podcast and the Puck Podcast. Puck Soup is ok, although I'm not a huge Ryan Lambert fan. I'll listen to The Athletic's hockey podcast from time to time. I know there are some other decent ones out there that I haven't explored yet.

Yeah, imagine we would have gotten anything close to fair market value for Judas back in the day, before he joined the Oilers (of all teams). He was one of the most highly-touted defensemen prospects in the league, and we could have probably gotten a player similar to an Eberle for him at that point in time. That may or may not have put us over the hump in 2015.

We probably include him in the deal to Toronto to reacquire Beauchemin (which was its own kind of stupid, but that's beside the point) instead of Jake Gardiner. And then we have Gardiner around for the next six or seven years.

 

[FiveHoleTickler]

To each his own, of course, but I enjoy the 32 Thoughts podcast and the Puck Podcast. Puck Soup is ok, although I'm not a huge Ryan Lambert fan. I'll listen to The Athletic's hockey podcast from time to time. I know there are some other decent ones out there that I haven't explored yet.

Puck Soup is the decent one I was referring to. Hear you on Lambert. He can definitely be a bit much. You can tell when Sean gets annoyed with him because he'll softly mutter a couple words and just let Lambert ramble. It was better with Wysh.

32 Thoughts is hit and miss for me. Not enough for me to tune in consistently, outside of when they touch on something Anaheim related. Haven't heard of Puck Podcast. Also only listen to The Athletic's hockey podcast when it's Anaheim related.

Sean fking Avery lol

He was the worst part of Oppenheimer.

 

[JAHV]

Puck Soup is the decent one I was referring to. Hear you on Lambert. He can definitely be a bit much. You can tell when Sean gets annoyed with him because he'll softly mutter a couple words and just let Lambert ramble. It was better with Wysh.

32 Thoughts is hit and miss for me. Not enough for me to tune in consistently, outside of when they touch on something Anaheim related. Haven't heard of Puck Podcast. Also only listen to The Athletic's hockey podcast when it's Anaheim related.


He was the worst part of Oppenheimer.

I love everything that Sean McIndoe does, so I'm good with Puck Soup despite Lambert. McIndoe used to do the Thursday show for The Athletic podcast, but now he just guest stars on the Wednesday edition. He and Ian Mendes have great rapport.

The Puck Podcast is two long-time friends who aren't in hockey media who do a weekly two-hour rundown of everything in the NHL. I enjoy it because while they do a great job of covering the league as a whole, they're based in SoCal and so give the Ducks and Kings plenty of time. One is a Ducks fan and the other is a Kings fan. Although the Ducks fan is pretty jaded by the Ducks lack of success the past several years, so he's not as engaged with them as he used to be. It might not be for everyone, but I enjoy a podcast where I can listen in on two knowledgeable people converse about hockey without having to know a bunch of inside jokes (they're great about not doing that).

 

[FiveHoleTickler]

I love everything that Sean McIndoe does, so I'm good with Puck Soup despite Lambert. McIndoe used to do the Thursday show for The Athletic podcast, but now he just guest stars on the Wednesday edition. He and Ian Mendes have great rapport.

The Puck Podcast is two long-time friends who aren't in hockey media who do a weekly two-hour rundown of everything in the NHL. I enjoy it because while they do a great job of covering the league as a whole, they're based in SoCal and so give the Ducks and Kings plenty of time. One is a Ducks fan and the other is a Kings fan. Although the Ducks fan is pretty jaded by the Ducks lack of success the past several years, so he's not as engaged with them as he used to be. It might not be for everyone, but I enjoy a podcast where I can listen in on two knowledgeable people converse about hockey without having to know a bunch of inside jokes (they're great about not doing that).

Sounds like it could be worth a listen. I'll give it a whirl. Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[JonathnTaylorTavares]

Just for fun (and because I have no idea myself)- if Zegras was moved in a Drysdale/Gauthier 1 for 1 type move, who do you think could be a guy he returns.... within the realm of realistic?

 

[FiveHoleTickler]

Just for fun (and because I have no idea myself)- if Zegras was moved in a Drysdale/Gauthier 1 for 1 type move, who do you think could be a guy he returns.... within the realm of realistic?

Drysdale.

 

[JonathnTaylorTavares]

Drysdale.

Lets gooo

 

[shach1]

crash the pond is the best ducks podcast

 

[FiveHoleTickler]

crash the pond is the best ducks podcast

 

[Smirnov2Chistov]

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I wish Derek Lee could do a podcast type thing. Not many quality ducks media outlets to listen to

 

[Rybread86]

 

[FiveHoleTickler]

I wish Derek Lee could do a podcast type thing. Not many quality ducks media outlets to listen to

His post-game interview uploads have been excellent!

 

[forever1922]

Almost as if it was the most obvious reason all along. And now let's see if philly fans turn their rage inwards? I'm not holding my breath. Also ladies and gentlemen, THAT was a high IQ play by Gauthier.

 

[Rybread86]

Almost as if it was the most obvious reason all along. And now let's see if philly fans turn their rage inwards? I'm not holding my breath. Also ladies and gentlemen, THAT was a high IQ play by Gauthier.

Fans are already dug in. This also shows the issues orgs can have going through major changes. Kid probably got lost in the shuffle and kept getting put off.

 

[forever1922]

Fans are already dug in. This also shows the issues orgs can have going through major changes. Kid probably got lost in the shuffle and kept getting put off.

Yes, it's plausible. And understandable from both sides. Even to the extent that Flyers would send agents to try and persuade Cutter. Although not very professional if indeed they were told not to contact him. I'm not completely familiar with all the issues Philly had but they must have had the owner still looking at the operations in some capacity while management was being reshaped who is ultimately at blame for the breakdown. Their accountability lies with the fans and the fans seem to eat it up so as you said.

Truly a curious situation.

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

This is not going to help, kid. Just let it die!

 

[HanSolo]

The Flyers being irrelevant for so long really makes you forget how annoying their fanbase is. More salt than the dead sea in his prospect thread.

A lot of it is one from one guy who claims to not be pressed by the situation but won't stop talking about it and using the "love" emoji on every post that criticizes Cutter. Kind of amusing to see that dedication from someone not pressed.

 

[forever1922]

A lot of it is one from one guy who claims to not be pressed by the situation but won't stop talking about it and using the "love" emoji on every post that criticizes Cutter. Kind of amusing to see that dedication from someone not pressed.

Imagine being one of the Flyers fans who look at the situation and realise the mistakes of the ownership and management and on top of that witness the conduct of your fellow fans. Also they just cost your #1 or #2 prospect that you've been hyped for 2 years for. I almost don't blame them for being angry but don't direct it at the brave kid that stood up for himself.

 

[Smirnov2Chistov]

Too many nimrods and idiots are allowed on the internet these days..

tearing down a teenager who didn't want to play for a franchise leads to death threats? Really?

 

[All Mighty]

I went to the Reddit thread of the Thrun trade and this was the most vicious comment I could find that was made in the thread.

 

[Deuce22]

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........ tl;dr ........
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Any RD we select in the 2024 draft will take 2-3 years of development. That's the big context missing here with trading away RD Drysdale. If the Ducks had selected scoring RW Snuggerud at 22nd overall, then we get a prospect that has played two seasons in college to potentially make the NHL jump next season and keep our RD depth at the NHL level.

Instead, we've cannibalized our NHL RD depth b/c our GM lacked the foresight of needing top-6 scoring in our system when it presented itself at 22nd overall in the 2022 draft with two scoring forward options in 6'2 RW Snuggerud or 6'0 C/LW Kulich. Verbeek prioritized a bottom-6, shutdown center over a potential top-6 scoring forwards.

Verbeek should have been playing chess instead of checkers. Because Verbeek was playing checkers, we're definitely paying extra for things we like and covet.


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The Lord of the Rings breakdown
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Whoa, whoa, whoa... There's a whole lot of context missing here.

First, you're utilizing a "prospect ranking" and missing on it are Minty (a 2022 draftee like Cutter) and Carlsson, a 2023 draftee. Oh that's right... both Minty and Carlsson aren't considered prospects since they are considered NHL mainstays.

Second, you are only looking at this trade with a micro view and not realizing what we lost by selecting shutdown C Nathan Gaucher over scoring RW Snuggerud, especially knowing we already have 24 year old, shutdown C Lundy in tow.

• Drafted
  • LW Cutter = 5th, Philly
  • LD Mintyukov = 10th, Anaheim
  • C Gaucher = 22nd, Anaheim
  • RW Snuggerud = 23rd, St. Louis

Spoiler: D+0 to D+2 stats: Cutter vs Snuggerud

• Draft +0
  • Cutter
    • USHL: 22 games; 19g + 9a = 28 pts
    • NDTP: 54 games; 34g + 31a = 65 pts
    • WJC-18=: 6 games; 3g + 6a = 9 pts
  • Snuggerud
    • USHL: 26 games; 6g + 20a = 26 pts
    • NDTP: 59 games; 24g + 39a = 63 pts
    • WJC-18: 6 games; 3g + 4a = 7 pts

• Draft +1
  • Cutter
    • NCAA (BC): 32 games; 16g + 21a = 37 pts
    • WJC-20: 7 games; 4g + 6a = 10 pts
    • WC: 10 games; 7g + 2a = 9 pts
  • Snuggerud
    • NCAA (Minny): 40 games; 21g + 29a = 50 pts
    • WJC-20: 7 games; 5g + 8a = 13 pts

• Draft +2
  • Cutter
    • NCAA (BC): 17 games; 13g + 10a = 23 pts
    • WJC-20: 7 games; 2g + 10a = 12 pts
  • Snuggerud
    • NCAA (Minny): 20 games; 16g + 6a = 22 pts
    • WJC-20: 6 games; 5g + 3a = 8 pts

Snuggerud has improved on his goal scoring once he hit the college scene. He's kept up with Cutter (or exceeded him in raw goal scoring) in college and WJC's. As for the latest WJC-20s, Snuggerud was sick in the exhibition rounds, which is why he played only 6 games and he had to work himself up the lineup when he was cleared to play.

This isn't a direct exchange between Cutter and Snuggerud, which is what you're implying. Cutter went 5th (Philly), Minty went 10th (Ducks), Gaucher went 22nd (Ducks), and Snuggerud went 23rd (Blues). If the Ducks wanted to trade up for Cutter, then it would have packaged the 10th, the 22nd, and maybe a 3rd round pick. Two years later from the draft, Cutter nets Drysdale and a 2025 2nd round pick.

Remember, Verbeek stated we lacked top-6 scoring in our system (because 2019 Z, 2021 Mac, and 2023 Carlsson are staying in the NHL). If Verbeek had drafted Snuggerud, then there wouldn't be this dire need to trade for Cutter. We retain Drysdale and aren't pigeon-holed on what to do with our first round in next year's draft.

I don't understand why people keep including LD prospects as a reason why to get rid of Drysdale because not many can do the switch. Minty and Vaak cannot play on their off-side, but LaCombe can. Except, recently, the Ducks are keeping LaCombe on the left side and putting older vet Fowler on the right side (which they should have done from the very start).

Ducks RD youths in the org (without Drysdale)

• NHL
  • Luneau (2022 draft):
    apparently knee infection at WJC... probably the same knee he had surgery on years ago
    still not an NHL product and projected to be returned to juniors once infection is healed
• AHL
  • Helleson (2019 draft):
    still not looking like an NHL product, but is a top-pairing RD in San Diego
    he's not an offensive guy nor a shutdown guy, passed up by LD Zell (offensive) and LD Hinds (shutdown)
• non-pro
  • Warren: looks to be years away
  • Moore: in junior season at Harvard and has been injured since Nov 27th. Probably could stay another year at Harvard to work on his offense, but would be prudent to sign him after this season due to necessity.
  • Port: is probably a longer term project than Warren, but NHL outlook for him looks bleak

It seems painfully obvious that we need a RD with our own 1st round in the 2024 draft. Using Minty and Drysdale as our past/current experiences of defensemen making the NHL, we are going to be waiting three years to look NHL established. Minty hit a rookie wall early in his D+2 season, mostly as a 3rd pairing, sheltered LD. Drysdale was barely hanging on in his D+2 season as a top-pairing RD.

• 2024 projected top-15, Defensemen focus
  Using myNHLdraft's Jan 10th iteration:
  • 5. LD Dickinson (OHL): 6'3, 205 lbs
  • 7. LD Silayev (KHL): 6'7, 207 lbs
  • 9. RD Levshunov (NCAA): 6'2, 198 lbs
  • 11. LD Buium (NCAA): 6'0, 185 lbs
  • 12. RD Yakemchuk (WHL): 6'3 190 lbs
  • 15. RD Jiricek (Cze): 6'2, 175 lbs

Great. Now were limited only to Lev, Yakem, and Jiricek. We probably have to hope to land the 2nd overall pick to ensure we snag Lev. (Tankathon's Jan 6th, 2024 mock has Lev as the first D-man drafted at 4th overall.) What I like about Lev is he's already at the NCAA level this year and may need only one more year in the NCAA before jumping over. The extra year in the NCAA will help Lev continue to develop his body on a better schedule than whatever the Ducks are doing with Carlsson.

=========
Conclusion / tl;dr
=========

Any RD we select in the 2024 draft will take 2-3 years of development. That's the big context missing here with trading away RD Drysdale. If the Ducks had selected scoring RW Snuggerud at 22nd overall, then we get a prospect that has played two seasons in college to potentially make the NHL jump next season and keep our RD depth at the NHL level.

Instead, we've cannibalized our NHL RD depth b/c our GM lacked the foresight of needing top-6 scoring in our system when it presented itself at 22nd overall in the 2022 draft with two scoring forward options in 6'2 RW Snuggerud or 6'0 C/LW Kulich. Verbeek prioritized a bottom-6, shutdown center over a potential top-6 scoring forwards.

Verbeek should have been playing chess instead of checkers. Because Verbeek was playing checkers, we're definitely paying extra for things we like and covet.

This idea that we wouldn't have had to trade Drysdale for Gauthier if Snuggerud was in the fold is not accurate. The Ducks have liked Gauthier all along, and when he became available, they pounced. Drysdale was traded out of an excess of young D and because his injury history is scary.

 

[Arthuros]

I went to the Reddit thread of the Thrun trade and this was the most vicious comment I could find that was made in the thread.
View attachment 800974

I think Thrun's a psychopath, but you don't see me posting about it!

 

[Rybread86]

I went to the Reddit thread of the Thrun trade and this was the most vicious comment I could find that was made in the thread.
View attachment 800974

The worst I think I saw was "F*** him then, bye". Then when you realized he was just looking out for his future with the log jam of Dmen we had, you were just happy he told the team so we could get something for him.