Cutter Gauthier and the Anaheim Ducks appear to be closing in on a monster extension this summer.
Insider Anthony Di Marco says he expects the two sides to land somewhere around $16 million to $17 million a year.
That would slot Gauthier's cap hit right between Connor Bedard and Leo Carlsson among the league's young forward class.
Big number for a player still working off an entry-level deal that pays him just $950,000 this season.
But the production backs it up. Gauthier is coming off the kind of year that changes a negotiation entirely.
He put up 41 goals and 28 assists for 69 points in 76 games, with a minus-2 rating that barely moved all year.
What Gauthier's production actually looks like up close
Eleven of those goals came on the power play, and seven were game-winners, the kind of number that gets a GM's attention fast.
Then the playoffs happened. Gauthier kept producing, picking up 4 goals and 8 assists for 12 points across 12 postseason games.
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He was still rolling in the stretch run too, posting 2 goals and 7 assists for 9 points over his final 10 games of the season.
Anaheim finished the regular season 43-33-6 for 92 points, good for 17th overall and third in their division.
General manager Pat Verbeek built this current group, and locking up Gauthier long-term is the clearest signal yet of where the Ducks think this is headed.
Joel Quenneville runs the bench, and a player scoring at Gauthier's pace gives him a legitimate top-line option for years to come.
Anaheim's own finish wasn't as smooth. They dropped six of their final ten games before closing out on a single-game win streak.
None of this is signed yet, and deals at this size can still stall over term or structure.
But when the number being floated puts a 22 year old next to Bedard and Carlsson, the Ducks clearly believe they've found their guy.
Is a $16-17 million AAV fair value for Cutter Gauthier?
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