Ducks re-sign Cutter Gauthier to massive six-year deal

Anaheim Ducks forward Cutter Gauthier. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Originally posted on Pro Hockey Rumors | By Brian La Rose | Last updated Sep 15, 2026 11:40 PM ET

After freeing up cap space last week by mutually terminating Chris Kreider’s deal, the Anaheim Ducks have now put that money to use. The Ducks announced that they’ve re-signed winger Cutter Gauthier to a six-year contract. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman relays that the agreement will carry a $13.5M AAV. GM Pat Verbeek released the following statement on the signing:

"We are pleased to get Cutter signed to a long-term deal and have him in camp on time. He’s a major part of our young core, a pure goal-scoring talent that will continue progressing into an elite NHL player."

While the year-to-year details are not yet publicly available, Friedman adds that around $69.5M of the $81M of the deal is being paid in signing bonuses. That structure would not have been allowed after today as the new CBA comes into effect on Wednesday.

The 22-year-old was the fifth overall selection by Philadelphia back in the 2022 draft but made it clear soon after that he didn’t intend on signing with them. Soon after, the Flyers dealt Gauthier to Anaheim in exchange for defenseman Jamie Drysdale and a 2025 second-round selection. Gauthier then put pen to paper three months later, getting into the final game of the 2023-24 season, burning a year of his contract in the process.

Gauthier had a solid rookie season in 2024-25, picking up 20 goals and 24 assists in 82 games, finishing fifth in Calder Trophy voting. He then took a big step forward last season under new head coach Joel Quenneville, leading the Ducks in both goals (41) and points (69). He followed that up with a dozen points in as many playoff games, setting himself up for a big payday.

The value of that payday has certainly come in much higher than expected compared to just a few months ago. The five-year, $90M offer sheet that Philadelphia tendered to center Leo Carlsson earlier this summer (one that was matched) reset the top of the market and pushed Gauthier’s asking price even higher. Unlike Carlsson, Gauthier didn’t have the threat of an offer sheet available to him but he was still able to leverage his performance into a contract that puts him in a tie for the fifth-highest-paid player in the league.

Considering his career trajectory thus far, it’s fair to say that this contract is an overpayment in present-day value, and not by a little bit. However, both sides clearly feel that this type of performance is repeatable, giving him a chance to live up to the price tag as the deal goes on, while ensuring that a key scoring threat won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. The six-year term means that all five of Gauthier’s RFA years are covered plus one additional UFA-eligible season, while setting him up to hit the open market at the age of 28.

This time a year ago, things were looking up cap-wise for the Ducks. They had a promising young nucleus with plenty of salary cap space. But with Carlsson’s deal setting the stage for a big raise for Gauthier and the threat of an offer sheet pushing Pavel Mintyukov into a pricey second contract, their books don’t look anywhere near as clean now. Meanwhile, winger Beckett Sennecke, who will be extension-eligible next summer, is likely to see his price tag go up with Gauthier’s deal now serving as a potentially viable comparable down the road.

With the signing, Anaheim currently has just over $2M in cap room for the upcoming season, per PuckPedia. They can add to that amount by sending one of their goaltenders down, either Ville Husso or Laurent Brossoit, whoever loses the backup role to Lukas Dostal. That should give Verbeek ample flexibility to work with to start the season but if injuries strike early, they can shift Troy Terry to LTIR for some short-term relief on that front.