According to a report from PuckPedia, the Philadelphia Flyers have signed forward Jacob Gaucher to a one-year, $850K contract for the 2026-27 season. Gaucher was scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer with arbitration rights.
Gaucher, 25, was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Flyers back in 2024. The Longueuil, Quebec native spent most of his QMJHL days with the Val-d’Or Foreurs before spending his final season with the Baie-Comeau Drakkar while also serving as the team’s captain.
Unfortunately, Gaucher didn’t produce enough in the QMJHL to warrant a draft selection. He scored 35 goals and 68 points in 66 games during his final season in 2021-22, but he already turned 21 by that point.
In fact, it wasn’t until a successful campaign in the ECHL that any team became interested in giving him an NHL contract. Before the 2022-23 season, Gaucher signed an AHL deal with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, yet he spent the entire year with the Reading Royals, scoring 22 goals and 61 points in 71 games with a +22 rating.
After that year, the Flyers felt comfortable giving him a two-year, two-way contract, but he’s still spent much of his time in the AHL since. He’s been a solid secondary scorer, registering 48 goals and 90 points in 198 games with the Phantoms, but has zero points to show for in eight NHL contests with the Flyers.
His next contract should offer him a similar role. The Phantoms didn’t have the best season, finishing four points shy of a spot in the Calder Cup playoffs, but Gaucher finished fourth on the team in scoring, and the organization likely has an interest in retaining the handful of players that performed well this season.