NHL long shot Jacob Gaucher is relishing his chance with the Flyers however long it lasts

SALT LAKE CITY ― There have been many firsts on the Flyers’ two-game trip out west.

The team practiced Monday at the Utah Olympic Oval, where the 2002 Olympics’ long-track speedskating events were held. On Tuesday, the Flyers will play the Utah Hockey Club in the Philly franchise’s first-ever game in Salt Lake City (9 p.m., NBCSP).

But those came after Jacob Gaucher made his NHL debut on Sunday.

“It was amazing,” said Gaucher, who was expected to play Game No. 2 on Tuesday. “Just doing the rookie lap to start, having my family there, just playing my first game in Colorado. ... I think I had a lot of fun, even though we didn’t win in the end.”

» READ MORE: Flyers hope first-ever trip to Utah yields goals, as they look to avoid setting a franchise record in futility

Gaucher got the good news from Lehigh Valley coach Ian Laperrière around midnight on Friday. He called his parents next, waking them up to tell them their son was heading to the NHL. The center then hopped in a car with defenseman Emil Andrae, who was recalled officially on Saturday, and headed down from Allentown before participating in practice.

Although Gaucher doesn’t turn 24 until March 9, it’s been a long journey to reach this milestone. The Quebec native played four full seasons in what then was the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, including 176 games with Val-d’Or Foreurs. He was an alternate captain in 2020-21, the same year newly acquired winger Jakob Pelletier, who sent him a congratulatory text on his debut, was the team’s captain.

Passed over in the 2019 NHL draft, Gaucher signed a contract with the Phantoms in 2022 and spent the season with Reading of the ECHL, collecting 61 points in 71 games. The next season, he played primarily with the Phantoms (16 points in 59 games), and, after a strong start to 2024-25, earned a two-way deal with the Flyers. Gaucher had 14 goals and 27 points in 44 games with the Phantoms this season before his recall.

According to Laperrière, Gaucher is a late bloomer. However, Flyers coach John Tortorella did not think he looked out of place against the high-powered Colorado Avalanche despite it being his first NHL game.

“You can see he thinks the game. ... I think both him and [Rodrigo Ābols] can think the game; that’s really important when you come up to a team from the minor leagues that the coach is able to trust you as far as thinking away from the puck,” Tortorella said Tuesday. “I thought Gauch had a really good first game. Wish I could have played him more, but we were chasing the game a little bit.”

Gaucher played 8 minutes, 8 seconds and had two shots on goal, one hit, and one blocked shot. The centerman won all three draws he took, including two against Jack Drury, one of the league’s top faceoff men.

» READ MORE: Danny Brière addresses some of the biggest questions regarding the Flyers’ trade with Flames

“I just remember, even in camp, talking with him about faceoffs,” captain Sean Couturier told The Inquirer. “He came up to me and asked questions. It’s nice to see a young guy like him wanting to learn, wanting to get better, and whatever I can do to help, I’ll be happy to do it.”

As the team awaits the arrival of Pelletier and Andrei Kuzmenko, who are still going through the visa process, Tortorella revealed that he was unsure of his line combinations. Nick Deslauriers is back in, which could jostle things, and the bench boss said he may try Gaucher at wing.

But the two-way center, who prides himself on being reliable defensively — note the healing cut under his eye from a puck that rode up his stick on a shot a few weeks ago — and making his presence known around the net offensively, is just focused on the here and now.

“Just trying to get better,” he said, “and hopefully show what I can do in the next game, too.”

Sam Ersson will start in net. ... Defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, who left Sunday’s game with an injury, will not play on Tuesday. ... Forward Owen Tippett skated with the team during its optional morning skate. It is the first time he was with the group since suffering an upper-body injury against the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday.