Unsettling silence on the Rasmus Sandin front; he's likely to sign, but here's where he could be headed if he doesn't
Rasmus Sandin has been a revelation in Blue and White. He's been a win since before he was drafted, literally. When the Leafs had the 25th overall pick in 2018, they read the temperature of the room and were shocked to find no one else was interested in their guy in round 1. So, they traded down with the St. Louis Blues their 25th for the Blues' 29th and 76th overall picks. To me, it was the type of move that helps make it easier to cut this front office some slack and accept that they are more prepared than any of us from our armchairs.
The Leafs would graduate both Travis Dermott and eventually Justin Holl the following season to full time duty with the big club. Timothy Liljegren, drafted the year prior to Sandin, was next on the depth chart, though not for long. Sandin played junior in the OHL for the (go figure) Soo Greyhounds, while Liljegren stayed in Sweden before coming straight to the AHL. This gave him a big leg up over Liljegren in getting used to the AHL game.
After just a shortened season and a half with the Marlies, he would get his full time call up. Despite being heavily set back by injuries, he would go on to leapfrog Dermott and Holl in the depth chart in no time.
His rise to full time NHLer has shaped the Leafs' defense these past two years. As their 7th defenseman, every 3rd pairing guy had to step up their game knowing he was waiting to take their spot. His dependability triggered the Leafs front office into trading away Travis Dermott. Not that Dermott was awful, but everything he can do Sandin can do better. When Holl started his NHL career, fans were extremely happy with this 29 year old former ECHLer. Now with Sandin and Liljegren on the roster, he doesn't look as good.
While goaltending is no doubt the top priority, Sandin should be second. If I'm Kyle Dubas, I'm doing whatever I can do make that happen. The first thing that needs to happen is a Justin Holl and/or Jake Muzzin trade. Not only for the money it frees up, but the ice time. As fans, if we could pick out the Leafs top 5 defensemen they'd be Rielly, Brodie, Giordano, Muzzin and Sandin. The problem? They're all left handed shots. Brodie and Sandin are comfortable on both sides, but it leaves a coach a bit stranded in some offensive situations.
The Leafs have until July 11 to qualify him, which they will. Beyond that, a deal for him is estimated to look like between $1.016m/1 year to $3.69m/8 years. It will be somewhere in the middle but either end of those looks good for the Leafs, and would give him massive trade value down the road should things not work out.
In the unlikely event that we see his rights traded away or a sign and trade deal made this year, the Vancouver Canucks pop out as likely trade partners. They had interest in Sandin at the deadline, as they'd like to see the rest of their defensive core able to move the puck up ice like Quinn Hughes does. The Leafs, meanwhile, are looking to round out their top 6. Rasmus Sandin and BC native Alex Kerfoot could be a part of a nice package for a player like JT Miller or Connor Garland.
Credit: Capfriendly
| POLL | ||
JUIN 26 | 456 ANSWERS Unsettling silence on the Rasmus Sandin front; he's likely to sign, but here's where he could be headed if he doesn't What does a Sandin deal look like? | ||
| 1 year $1.25m | 73 | 16 % |
| 3 years $2.6m | 257 | 56.4 % |
| 8 year $3.7m | 81 | 17.8 % |
| Package him for a top 6 forward | 45 | 9.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
