ANAHEIM, Calif. — Late in the 17th game of his NHL career, Cutter Gauthier finally scored a goal for the Anaheim Ducks.

Gauthier’s teammates and coaches don’t expect him to have to wait this long to score the second goal in an already tumultuous year for a talented rookie learning all about the multiple challenges of professional hockey.

The 20-year-old forward finally found the net with his 36th shot of the season Friday night, beating Detroit’s Alex Lyon early on. After 15 straight scoreless games this season – and a scoreless start in Anaheim’s season finale last April – Gauthier celebrated with excitement and relief.

Better yet, his goal broke the tie in what turned out to be a 6-4 win over the Red Wings.

“It wasn’t due to a lack of opportunities, but it was a dream come true,” Gauthier said. “Against (my) home team, Detroit, it was a surreal moment, and I’m so excited.”

Gauthier has already experienced a lot in 2024, but he hasn’t slowed down.

His year began with the end of his tough matchup with the Philadelphia Flyers, who drafted him fifth overall in 2022. After Gauthier declined to join the club for reasons that still remain unclear, Philly dropped out and traded him to the Ducks in January for promising defenseman Jamie Drysdale.

Gauthier then finished his senior season at Boston College, where he was named a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award and reached the Frozen Four championship game. He joined the Ducks for his first NHL game in April, then joined them in September for training camp, punching his ticket straight to the major leagues.

And then the goal drought began. Gauthier started on a line with Leo Carlsson, the Ducks’ teenage Swedish point guard — but after a promising preseason, they couldn’t translate their formidable talents into scoring chemistry once the regular season began.

“Obviously, it’s the best league in the world, and we don’t have a lot of time and space,” Gauthier said. “I think the biggest thing I’ve noticed is when to handle the puck, when to make the right play when I have a little time, and when to just keep it simple and go deep , or doing a forecheck . I think just adapting a little to the speed and quality of the guys was the biggest transition for me.

Ducks coach Greg Cronin also worried about the habits that would be created by this unsuccessful partnership, so he moved Gauthier up and down the lineup. Gauthier started Friday night on Anaheim’s putative fourth line before Cronin moved him to another group during the game.

Despite all that, Gauthier didn’t stop working or shooting the puck – both things Cronin demands of his forwards.

“He hits the puck,” Cronin said. “To his credit, he was moved down the lineup to try to simplify his game and get a little more fourth-line habits and more of a checking commitment. We always talk about changing the value system to give guys a reset on what they’re focused on instead of just scoring goals, and I think he fed off that. And the whole time he did that, he was positive, supporting his teammates, not sulking, training hard. I love talking about these kinds of stories because they reflect the culture we’re trying to create here.

The first goal had extra meaning for Gauthier, the son of a well-traveled goaltender who played only one NHL game during his long professional career. Although he was born in Sweden and later raised in Arizona, Gauthier spent his adolescence in Michigan, playing in the state’s vaunted youth system.

With his historic puck secure, Gauthier can look for more. The Ducks are counting on him to be a key part of their young core as they aim for their first playoff berth since 2018.

“We have a young, highly skilled team that can make plays like these night in and night out,” Gauthier said. “It’s just about having the confidence to do that consistently.” It’s a very young group, but also confident. The more we build our confidence, the more we will do it in the future.