Flyers first-rounder Cutter Gauthier embracing development camp alongside U.S. NTDP teammate Devin Kaplan

The day after the Flyers selected U.S. National Team Development Program center/left winger Cutter Gauthier with the No. 5 pick, he meandered in the basement of the Bell Centre, soaking in the second day of the draft.

Early in the third round, Gauthier overheard an announcement on the draft floor linking a player from the NTDP with the Flyers. Gauthier’s ears instantly perked up. When he heard Devin Kaplan’s name read out over the speakers, he erupted with excitement.

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“I was jumping up,” Gauthier said. “I was so pumped. He’s been a good friend of mine over the course of two years and I’m just glad I can share this experience with him.”

Gauthier and Kaplan made their on-ice, in-practice debuts with the Flyers on Monday at the first day of development camp. The first session of the day focused primarily on passing and puck control drills. At the end of the session, Gauthier ripped one-timers from the top of the circle off of passes from Kaplan, almost as if they were back in Plymouth, Michigan together.

“I definitely felt a lot more comfortable instead of just being the new kid on the block,” Gauthier said. “[It’s nice] to have another familiar face to go through this experience together.”

Gauthier will look to maintain that sense of comfort as he heads to Boston College next season for his first year of college hockey. After spending most of this past season playing on the wing alongside Arizona Coyotes third-overall pick Logan Cooley, Gauthier expects to play center at BC.

Over the course of his last two years with the NTDP, Gauthier said he has developed his defensive skills and feels like he’s a fit up the middle of the ice. The Flyers would certainly like to see him transition there, too, as they look to shore up their organizational depth at center.

“I just think I feel most comfortable and most dominant in the middle,” Gauthier said. “I think I play a really responsible, defensive side of the game. And I think as a winger, I don’t really have that much responsibility on the defensive side and helping the D win puck battles in the corner and really help breaking the puck out.”

But for now, Gauthier is coming down from the high of being selected fifth overall and is focused on getting the most out of development camp this week.

“It was such a fun moment,” Gauthier said. “Enjoyed time with my family and friends who came to the draft. Lots of whirlwind of emotions over the course of a couple of days, but it was a good time and I’m glad I’m here.”

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In late November, Flyers winger Tyson Foerster required shoulder surgery after he dove for a puck, his elbow hit the ice, and he felt a pop. The injury ended his nine-game stint with the Phantoms, as he took the next four and a half months to work himself back to full health.

However, while he was doing his rehab in Voorhees, Foerster focused about a month of his training on skating alone until he could use his upper body again. The strength of Foerster’s skating has been a topic of discussion since he was drafted by the Flyers in the first round (No. 23) in 2020.

“I was with Kjell Samuelsson for a bunch of it and Slava [Kuznetsov], the skating coach, because I wasn’t able to use a stick or anything,” Foerster said. “So I was actually on the ice skating here a bit during that time until I could start stick handling and shooting and stuff.”

Upon recovering from surgery, Foerster returned to his OHL club, the Barrie Colts, to finish out the season. In 19 games between the regular season and postseason, Foerster scored seven goals and registered eight assists.

Foerster returned to Vorhees for development camp on Monday for the first time since he wrapped up rehab. Flyers senior advisor Mike O’Connell said that physically, Foerster appears to have matured drastically since he last saw him.

“It’s a pro body now,” said O’Connell. “You can tell he’s gained some weight. He looks stronger. He’s leaned out for me. You look at him, he was never heavy. But, you can look at a player over the last probably three or four months, I see a huge difference in his physique, the way he carries himself, he looks like he’s eating properly.”

With training camp a couple of months away, Foerster is focused on continuing to get stronger as he looks to compete for a roster spot come September.

“Everything happens for a reason,” Foerster said. “So I mean, it [stunk] a lot. I wanted to be playing. I wanted to be with the guys every night and working out with them and doing all that sort of stuff. But I knew the bigger picture and I gotta work, get my shoulders healthy now and so I can be ready to go in the future.”