On Monday, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms signed forward Jacob Gaucher to a two-year, two-way contract and goalie Nolan Maier to a one-year, one-way contract.
Jacob Gaucher, a 21-year-old from Longueuil, Quebec, played five seasons in the QMJHL with the Val-d’Or Foreurs and Baie-Comeau Drakkar with 65 goals and 76 assists (141 points) in 242 games. In addition, Gaucher has two goals and ten assists (12 points) in 23 playoff games. In his final year, Gaucher was the captain of Baie-Comeau Drakkar, scoring 35 goals and 33 assists (68 points) in 66 games. In the playoffs, he had three assists in four games.
In 2021, Gaucher won the Marcel Roberts Trophy as the QMJHL Scholastic Player of the Year award. He completed 15 courses of his Business Degree at the University of New Brunswick at that time while maintaining a 4.1 GPA.
Nolan Maier, a 21-year-old from Yorkton, Saskatchewan, played five seasons in the WHL for the Saskatoon Blades (2017-21) with a 122-72-18 record, a 2.89 GAA, and a .905 SV% in 216 games. In addition, Maier is 7-7-1, with a 3.27 GAA and a .897 SV% in 15 playoff games.
Along with the WHL, Maier played two seasons for the Yorkton Terriers (SJHL) with a 1-6-1 record, a 5.14 GAA, and a .895 SV% in eight games. In 2019, Maier played for Canada U18 team with a 2-1 record, a 2.67 GAA, and a .926 GAA in three games. In addition, Maier won the Hlinka Gretzky Cup Gold Medal in 2019 with a 3.12 GAA and a .872 in four games.
The Phantoms open the AHL preseason this Saturday, October 7th, against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at 7:05 pm.
