Did my league determine our draft order by pulling names from a Yeti cooler on a flooded golf course Sunday? Yes, it did. Has the fantasy hockey season snuck up on anyone else this year? You’re not alone. With draft night quickly approaching, there are still a few major question marks surrounding some prominent fantasy players.

Cutter Gauthier (Anaheim Ducks, 22, LW/RW)

Current RFA

Well, the news cycle is once again centered on the Ducks, as reports indicate that Cutter Gauthier has declined a four-year, $13 million deal from Anaheim. While this isn’t always the case, it often feels like the teams that have successful seasons follow it up with a quiet, uneventful offseason. That certainly hasn’t been the case for the Ducks.

While I can’t quote the person who rosters Gauthier in my league word-for-word, I can summarize his reaction: “Flippin’ Danny Brière really messed up my offseason.”

Honestly, he’s not wrong. The Flyers-Ducks saga surrounding Gauthier has reached a point where I think we’ll still be talking about it years from now. Brière has effectively reset the market for players coming off their entry-level contracts, and that will have major implications for both salary-cap leagues and the NHL itself moving forward.

Once the reported contract figures became public, I was immediately concerned. Offering Gauthier $13 million over four years is already a challenge when Anaheim has just committed significant dollars to Leo Carlsson‘s extension. Looking at the bigger picture, the Ducks have only about $9 million in available cap space. A Troy Terry LTIR scenario could provide some relief, but this is the type of situation where the cap gymnastics start getting a little too creative, and that almost always leads to trouble.

So, what happens next from a fantasy perspective? I see two possible outcomes, both of which are likely to raise expectations for Gauthier’s next contract.

It’s important to note that Gauthier cannot currently receive an offer sheet, which means the first option is that Anaheim comes back with an improved offer, perhaps something in the neighborhood of five years at $15 million. However, that would create significant challenges for this season’s roster construction. The Ducks would likely need to move a player for 10 cents on the dollar, or find another way to maximize LTIR flexibility.

The second option makes more sense to me. If Anaheim is being proactive, I’m already on the phone looking for trade partners. In that scenario, any acquiring team would likely work out a new contract as part of a sign-and-trade arrangement.

This is a frustrating time for fantasy managers who roster Gauthier because I genuinely believe we’re not far away from him entering Rocket Richard Trophy conversations annually. He delivered 41 goals this season and has the upside to push into the upper-40s without much difficulty. Regardless of where he ends up, his long-term fantasy outlook remains extremely bright.

Quinn Hughes (Minnesota Wild 26, D)

$7.85M AAV | 2027-28 UFA

Let’s shift focus to Quinn Hughes, as the “will he or won’t he” extension saga in Minnesota has been part of the conversation ever since the Friday he was traded.

I’ve seen rumors suggesting an AAV north of $14 million, and if you’re rostering Hughes in fantasy, it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Contract numbers across the league have skyrocketed, undoubtedly making negotiations more complicated for the Wild. I have a hard time believing a deal is already essentially done because, if it were, why hasn’t he signed yet?  This could be a situation where the Hughes camp is content to wait out Minnesota, or perhaps they’re willing to enter the regular season without an extension in place and take their chances with free agency next summer.

The approaching regular season could create some urgency for the Wild. If history is any indication, Minnesota may ultimately be forced to meet Hughes at a higher AAV within the next month. After all, both of Kirill Kaprizov‘s contract negotiations seemed to drag on until the eleventh hour before finally getting done.

If there’s any short-term relief for fantasy managers, it’s that Hughes’ cap hit for the upcoming season is already known. That makes roster construction significantly easier for those heading into player drafts. Hughes was outstanding last season, finishing second among defensemen in assists and eighth overall in the league. He accomplished that despite spending part of the year on a struggling Vancouver roster. Hope is a terrible business model, but for the sake of both fantasy managers and hackneyed NHL storylines, I hope an extension gets done sooner rather than later.

For more on that, be sure to tune in to NHL Network, where they’ll break down for the 150th time the fascinating fact that one NHL organization happens to roster not one, but two of Quinn Hughes‘ brothers.

*Salary Cap data from PuckPedia.com  

For continued fantasy news and notes, follow me on Twitter @ndySanz.