Rasmus Sandin's agent spoke with the Toronto media on Wednesday and Kyle Dubas does not seem pleased
For those of you who had been hoping for a quick resolution to the Leafs' contract negotiations with RFA defenseman Rasmus Sandin, I'm afraid there's some bad news on that front. According to Sandin's agent, Lewis Gross, the Leafs and his client are at a complete and utter standstill in contract negotiations, which are going "nowhere" fast.
Gross had a call set up with Sportsnet on Wednesday, and as Leafs beat reporter Luke Fox is reporting, after more than a month of negotiations, the Buds and "Sandman" are "no closer to inking a contract extension".
Gross did not wish to elaborate on what is causing the discussions to remain stalled, nor was he willing to divulge information about how Sandin was feeling about the whole ordeal. That's certainly not going to instill a lot of confidence that a deal could get done sooner than later. If anything, it may lend to the train of thought that an offer sheet could be increasing in likelihood.
Sportsnet had reached out to Leafs GM Kyle Dubas for his reaction to the comments made by Gross and his reply seemed to indicate that he is none too pleased with Gross having spoken to the media, even if there was not much said.
"Negotiating contracts via the media have an adverse impact on player (and) team reputation and traditionally do not create resolutions to private matters."
-Kyle Dubas on the status of the Sandin negotiations reaching the media
-Kyle Dubas on the status of the Sandin negotiations reaching the media
A little over a month ago, Dubas was full of promise and intrigue regarding both Sandin and fellow Swede Timothy Liljegren, stating that he expects both players to play huge roles on the team as soon as this season and well beyond.
"They're massive parts of our future. They're significantly younger than the other full-time members of our defense corps. And we need them to continue to take steps. In Rasmus's case, one of the major focuses is on trying to set him up to continue to be healthy all the way through the year and putting the proper resources into him to arm him to do that. We see he and Timothy as both massive parts of it moving ahead."
-Dubas on Sandin and Liljegren from the draft in Montreal last month
-Dubas on Sandin and Liljegren from the draft in Montreal last month
Liljegren accepted a 2-year deal this summer, which carries a $1.4M AAV. It is believed that Sandin was extended a similar offer, but came in with a counter offer closer to the contract signed by Columbus Blue Jackets defender Adam Boqvist earlier this year, 3 years at $2.6M per season.
One seriously has to wonder whether these negotiations have soured the Leafs on the young Swede and whether or not they'd consider using him as the centerpiece of a trade to either upgrade on defense or to secure some help up front, on the left side of John Tavares and William Nylander.
Previously on MapleLeafsDaily
| POLL | ||
AOUT 17 | 701 ANSWERS Rasmus Sandin's agent spoke with the Toronto media on Wednesday and Kyle Dubas does not seem pleased Should the Leafs trade Rasmus Sandin? | ||
| Yes, he's getting greedy at a young age | 328 | 46.8 % |
| No, he's a very good young defenseman | 133 | 19 % |
| Only for a clear upgrade | 240 | 34.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
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