"I don't know Cutter from a hole in the wall": The Flyers Organization Reacts to Gauthier-Drysdale Trade

John Tortorella and other Flyers' reactions to Cutter Gauthier trade.

To understand why Philadelphia turned so viscously on Cutter Gauthier in the time it took the Flyers social media admin to hit send on a tweet, one would need to go back months, to a time when the only people aware of Gauthier's flakiness on playing for the Flyers were the Flyers and Gauthier's team. After being drafted fifth overall in 2022, all signs pointed to Gauthier being all in on Philadelphia. Flyers GM Danny Briere said that the young center was "gung ho" about getting involved with the organization after getting drafted, but, by May of last year, had informed the Flyers' front office that he didn't see himself donning the orange and black.

Although he had flip-flopped on this decision several times, the saga culminated in Gauthier refusing to participate in the Flyers' July development camp and, by all accounts, seeming to have completely ignored Briere and Flyers president of hockey operations Keith Jones shortly thereafter.

Briere openly stated that the Flyers had been trying for months to get Gauthier to change his mind, and chose to stay silent on the issue to "protect the kid."

Speaking at the Wells Fargo Center on Jan. 8, Briere said: "It's been going on for a while. We tried to give [Gauthier] space, we tried to get in touch with him many times—they would not communicate."

It even went as far as Briere and Jones hopping on a flight to Sweden in an attempt to get in contact with Gauthier at World Juniors, where Gauthier was shining for gold medal winners Team USA. No dice.

"We tried, but [Gauthier's team] would not engage," Briere said. "We just wanted to be able to present our case and tell them what we were doing here, and where this organization is going."

Briere insists that nobody in the organization was given a concrete reason for Gauthier not wanting to play in Philadelphia. Once the news broke on social media, it didn't matter. The consensus was clear: There would be a target on Gauthier's back whenever he dared set foot in Philadelphia city limits. After all, as Jones said on the Monday night Flyers' broadcast, "You don't want to be a Flyer? You're not going to be a Flyer."

As the night marched on, more people within the team spoke on the situation, feeding an insatiably hungry audience desperate to find someone who could give an answer to why Gauthier gave Briere and Jones the cold shoulder.

In the locker room, defenseman Travis Sanheim said that "the only thing I had heard about [Gauthier] was not wanting to be at development camp. Obviously as a player in this locker room, that was something that stayed with us. For as long as I've known, you show up to development camp, whether you skate or not."

Sanheim also echoed Jones' comments, saying, "Obviously if somebody doesn't want to be here, we're happy to have a guy that does...If [Gauthier] doesn't want to be here, we're happy to move on."

Carter Hart was a tad gentler: "I've never met [Gauthier]. Obviously I heard he's a great player...I wish him the best elsewhere."

Naturally, the man everyone wanted to hear from most was Flyers head coach John Tortorella—and he did not disappoint.

Tortorella came out of the gate swinging, remarking that he doesn't know Gauthier "from a hole in the wall" and that he's "not too interested in talking about [Gauthier]. I'd rather talk about Jamie. He's the guy that's coming here."

Amidst the firestorm of abuse raining down on Gauthier, the Flyers did manage to remind people that while Gauthier's behavior didn't sit right with anybody, the team is getting an excellent young player in 21-year-old defenseman Jamie Drysdale.

Drysdale was drafted sixth overall in 2020, renowned for his skating ability and power play prowess. During the 2021-22 NHL season, he recorded 12 power play points, part of his 45 points in 123 career games (eight goals, 37 assists). Already lauded as a skilled defenseman at such a young age, the Flyers have high hopes for the levels Drysdale can reach in Philadelphia, considering that the Flyers fortifying their back line "was a priority...from the get-go."

"Drysdale is a highly talented player, very smooth skater, all-around defenseman," Briere said. "I see him being part of a top pair defense for a long time here...He's going to fit in with [Cam York and Travis Sanheim] especially, so it's another piece of the puzzle for us."

Tortorella agreed: "We're really excited about the opportunity. A 21-year-old right-handed shot. Skill, lateral movement. We want to put him on the power play right away. I think it's a really good deal for us.

"I think what's eventually going to give this group a jolt is he's a high-character kid, too," the head coach continued. "Information has gotten back to me that there's going to be some people upset there in Anaheim, some of his teammates, in just how he handles himself."

Briere assured fans that the Flyers' new defenseman, who's already set to be in practice on Jan. 9, will be a great fit in both the short- and long-term.

"Not very often you get the chance to find a Jamie Drysdale that you can add to your lineup," Briere said. "When that came about and his name was made available, we got really excited. The chance to add a player of his caliber to a premium position, as right-shot defenseman for a left winger, it just made a lot of sense and we felt it was the right time to do it.

"When Jamie's name came up, this was a pretty special player we felt. The chance to add him, they don't come very often. Jamie's an exciting player. There's going to be an adjustment period we feel because of the style of play in Anaheim to our style of play, but in the long term, I think he's going to be a fantastic player for this team."