Ducks sign Gauthier for 6 years; deal worth $13.5M AAV, source says

The Anaheim Ducks signed forward Cutter Gauthier, 22, to a six-year contract, the team announced on Tuesday night. Sources told ESPN that the deal is worth $13.5 million annually. The deal includes an $18.6 million signing bonus in Year 1, plus $850,000 in salary. So, he will make nearly $19.5 million in his first year, a source said. The agreement keeps one of Anaheim's young cornerstones in place after a breakout season in which Gauthier led the Ducks with 41 goals and 69 points. The Ducks exceeded expectations by making the playoffs last season, then upsetting the Edmonton Oilers in the first round. Gauthier, 22, scored 12 points in 12 playoff games for the Ducks first playoff appearance in eight years. Gauthier was the No. 5 pick of the 2022 NHL draft by the Philadelphia Flyers. After arriving in Anaheim in a 2024 blockbuster trade, Gauthier became a restricted free agent this summer coming off his entry-level contract. "This is a very exciting day for my family and I," Gauthier said in a team statement. "I'm so pleased to be able to sign long term with the Ducks and be part of what I believe is a great future." It's been a transformative offseason for Anaheim, which matched an offer sheet for Leo Carlsson from Philadelphia in July. That deal made Carlsson the NHL's highest-paid player at $18 million per season -- which has now been surpassed twice, by San Jose Sharks forward Macklin Celebrini and Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar. The Carlsson contract, and impending deal for Gauthier, forced the Ducks to waive veteran Chris Kreider last week for what general manager Pat Verbeek called "salary cap flexibility." Kreider went on to sign a one year deal with the Montreal Canadiens, and was introduced on Monday. Gauthier's deal came down on Tuesday, the final day of the NHL's old Collective Bargaining Agreement, which allows for eight-year contract limits. That deadline spurred a flurry of deals around the league. Moving forward, a player can only sign with his team for a maximum of seven years. Also, in the new CBA, rules will change how salary bonuses in contracts can be structured going forward. Gauthier, who was born in Sweden where is father was playing professionally, was raised in the United States. He developed through the U.S. National Team Development Program and Boston College where he was a Hobey Baker Award finalist.