Cutter Gauthier
hasn't had the opportunity to meet Auston Matthews but feels as though he's known him his whole life.
Matthews, chosen No. 1 by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2016 NHL Draft, was born in San Ramon, California, but moved with his family to Scottsdale, Arizona, when he was 2 months old.
Gauthier (6-foot-2, 200 pounds), No. 3 in NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters eligible for the 2022 draft, was born in Skelleftea, Sweden, and moved to Scottsdale with his family when he was 2 years old.
"There's not much recognition out there in the desert, so you are kind of just building your name, showcasing your skill from kind of the other side of the country where hockey doesn't really get looked at much," Gauthier said. "I actually started to really learn about Matthews when I moved out to Michigan [with the NTDP in 2020], so it's pretty cool to see Auston's path and how well he's doing in the National Hockey League.
"It's neat how our paths growing up have kind of aligned, whether it was playing for the NTDP or growing up in Arizona and playing hockey. It's great to see how hockey is expanding, especially in the desert."
The NTDP left wing not only has a body type similar to Matthews (6-1, 210) in his draft-eligible season, but also that same dynamic shot.
"I'm a two-way power forward with lots of skill and physicality and I love making plays," Gauthier said. "I love scoring goals and setting up my teammates as well as playing a physical game to create space and time for myself and my teammates."