97.5 The Fanatic Flyers Roundup: Cutter Gauthier AND Everything Else

It’s not often that the Philadelphia Flyers can steal the attention of the local sports scene the week leading up to an Eagles playoff game. The stunning Cutter Gauthier trade did just that, however. 97.5 The Fanatic provided up-to-the-minute coverage and exclusive interviews with Danny Briere and Keith Jones.

News of the big splash spread throughout the Wells Fargo Center shortly after the puck dropped on Monday. Gauthier had no interest in joining the Flyers, and Briere moved the former 5th-overall pick for Jamie Drysdale and a future 2nd-rounder.

Keith Jones made one of the most important proclamations of the entire saga during his interview with The John Kincade Show on Tuesday when he expressly denied the report that Kevin Hayes influenced Gauthier’s decision.

The organization hopes to develop Drysdale into a foundational piece of the rebuild. The smooth-skating defenseman logged 19:46 of ice time in his Philadelphia debut against the Habs. He set up Morgan Frost for a power-play goal in the second period and later drove three separate scoring chances during the 3-on-3 overtime period.

The addition of Drysdale adds a high-caliber player to the lineup in a season when the Flyers didn’t expect significant contributions from Gauthier. They now have eight defensemen on the active NHL roster. John Tortorella will have to perform some short-term lineup gymnastics to manage his blue line.

Sean Walker, Nick Seeler, and Rasmus Ristolainen have drawn interest on the trade market. Conversations could heat up quickly.

Elliotte Friedman of SportsNet reported some details of the dispute between Gauthier and the Philadelphia front office. The issue apparently predated the front office restructure when Jones and Briere took control. 

According to Friedman, Gauthier wanted to turn pro after his freshman season at Boston College ended in March 2023. Cap restrictions caused some complications for the Flyers when they explored signing their star prospect to an entry-level contract. The new decision-makers within the organization who gained more stable control in May 2023 assumed the issues wouldn’t damage the long-term relationship with the player. They were wrong.

The report aligns with the information Jones shared on The John Kincade Show. The former TNT analyst said that he learned there was a problem while he was still working in television. He specifically referred to it as an “inherited” issue.

The Flyers sit in a deadlock with the New York Islanders for third place in a tight Metropolitan Division race. They’ll begin a three-game Western Conference road swing after earning five of eight possible points on a four-game stretch at the Wells Fargo Center.

The highlight of the trip will be a Saturday night matchup north of the border with plenty of Canadian eyes watching the Winnipeg Jets, who currently own the best record in the NHL.

The iconic brand of the Philadelphia Flyers has developed through a storied history since Ed Snider founded the franchise in 1967.

The days of the Broad Street Bullies during the 1970s put the Flyers on the map in Philadelphia. They’ve since transitioned into different eras that have inspired the perception around the NHL of the seventh integral team to hockey tradition outside the Original Six.

Back-to-back Stanley Cups in 1974-75 established the identity of the Flyers. They revolutionized the NHL with intimidation tactics that changed the game of hockey forever. The organization still considers the Broad Street Bullies the root of their DNA. It's no surprise that four players with retired numbers skated for the notorious Bullies.

Their success as one of the top teams in the NHL continued during the 1980s. They made it back to three Stanley Cup Finals in one decade, unfortunately losing all of them. The Flyers proved they could never stay out of the spotlight when they sent shockwaves through the NHL by acquiring Eric Lindros in 1992.

The era that followed kept them in the conversation as a Stanley Cup contender through the 1990s. They maintained that status into the first decade of the 2000s. They hope to revitalize that tradition in the modern era.

The Flyers have consistently kept their alumni involved to honor their accomplishments of the past. Their reputation around the league as an organization who takes care of people who’ve made contributions to the organization still proceeds them around the NHL.

Fans who look in the rafters of the Wells Fargo Center see banners proudly displaying the accomplishments of the Broad Street Bullies era, multiple Patrick Division crowns, and the 2009-10 Eastern Conference Championships.

However, the Philadelphia Flyers have reserved the honor of retired numbers for only six former players.

“Only the Lord saves more than Bernie Parent.”

Countless drivers in Philadelphia during the 1970s read the iconic bumper sticker about the future Hall of Fame goaltender. Parent accumulated Hall of Fame numbers over 13 NHL seasons, 10 of which included stints with the Flyers.

The real mark of his legacy came in the 1973-74 and 1974-75 seasons. He won the Vezina Trophy as the top goaltender in the NHL after both regular seasons. His 47 wins in 1973-74 stood as a league record until 2007.

Parent won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP for each of the only two Stanley Cups in franchise history after both of his Venzina seasons. The famed Broad Street Bullies built their reputation on intimidation and grit, but they never would’ve sniffed a Stanley Cup without Bernie Parent between the pipes.

Mark Howe played six seasons in the WHA to begin his professional career and didn’t make his debut with the Flyers until age 27. However, he established himself as the indisputable best defenseman in franchise history.

He still holds franchise records for goals, assists, points, shorthanded goals, and plus/minus rating among defensemen. Most of the blueliners behind him in the major statistical categories played more games with the Flyers. Howe published a book cleverly named Gordie Howe’s Son in 2013.

Barry Ashbee began his career in Philadelphia at age 31. He played 287 regular-season and playoff games in orange and black. He finished fourth in Norris Trophy voting for the best NHL defenseman in 1973-74, when he became a key member of the first Stanley Cup team in Flyers history.

Ashbee suffered an unfortunate eye injury that ended his playing career in 1974. He joined the Flyers staff as an assistant coach but passed away from leukemia three years later.

The organization has consistently honored his legacy after the two tragic occurrences. They award the Barry Ashbee Trophy to the team’s best defenseman every season, and they retired his number shortly after his death.

Bill Barber still holds the franchise record with 420 goals decades after his retirement in 1983-84. The “LCB line” with Reggie Leach, Bobby Clarke, and Barber brought the offensive firepower the Broad Street Bullies needed to win two Stanley Cups.

The Flyers organizational lifer built his reputation with a Hall of Fame playing career, a stint as head coach, and a long tenure as a front office executive.

It’s tough to come up with a player who can define the identity of a franchise in the NHL or in all of professional sports more than Bobby Clarke defines the Flyers. He incredibly won three of four Hart Trophies as the league MVP from 1972-73 through 1975-76. Clarke wore the “C” as the heart and soul of the Broad Street Bullies during the best era in franchise history.

He has remained around the organization in various roles since his retirement in 1984.

The Flyers made arguably the biggest splash in NHL history when they acquired the rights to Eric Lindros in 1992 after some lengthy drama. He was supposed to be the next Wayne Gretzky, and his dynamic skill and intimidating power didn’t disappoint when he was on the ice. He won the Hart Trophy after the shortened 1994-95 season and helped the Flyers to an appearance in the 1997 Stanley Cup Final.

Concussions derailed the career of arguably the most talented hockey player ever to lace up the skates. He struggled to stay healthy in a stretch that infamously ended with a devastating hit from Scott Stevens in the 2000 Eastern Conference Final.

He ranks sixth in franchise history in scoring, but his 1.36 points per game average blows every other Flyers skater out of the water. The organization has properly moved on from disagreements with one of their all-time greats whose number has hung in the rafters of the Wells Fargo Center since 2018.

The Flyers were in Stanley Cup contention when Claude Giroux broke into the NHL. The crafty forward developed into the organizational centerpiece, but the team dragged through a forgettable era in franchise history during his captaincy.

Giroux is second in Flyers history in points, games played, and assists trailing only the legendary Bobby Clarke. He played on teams that won six total playoff series and recorded 73 postseason points, including an overtime goal in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final in 2010. He has finished fourth or higher in Hart Trophy voting three times during his tenure in Philadelphia.

The Flyers will someday retire the number of one of their all-time greats who unfortunately never broke through with a Stanley Cup.