Former Leafs defender Sandin lands $23 million contract with Capitals
A former Toronto Maple Leafs first-round pick is finally cashing in on his first long-term NHL contract extension.
Today, ex-Leafs defenceman Rasmus Sandin signed a five-year, $23 million deal with the Washington Capitals.
The Capitals broke the news themselves, confirming the value of the contract in a release.
Sandin was previously on a two-year, $2.8 million total value contract originally signed prior to the start of the 2022-23 season in Toronto. He spent parts of four seasons in Toronto, suiting up for 140 games while putting up 10 goals and 38 assists over the course of his career.
Slightly over a year ago this week, he was surprisingly traded to the Capitals in exchange for Erik Gustafsson and a first-round pick, and has since suited up in 71 contests for Washington.
Since joining the Capitals, he’s playing more than he ever did in Toronto, with his 21:19 of average ice time in 2023-24 the highest total of his career, while adding three goals and 17 assists this season.
While the 23-year-old didn’t always crack Toronto’s lineup during his time with the franchise, he denied any rumours that he requested a trade away from the Maple Leafs.
“I mean, I really enjoyed my time in Toronto, I think it was fantastic,” Sandin said this past offseason on an episode of Sportsnet’s 32 Thoughts podcast with Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman.
“I mean, how, how much the fans care about the sport itself, the team, I mean… it’s awesome playing a Tuesday night in front of a packed arena every single night. So that was awesome. And you kind of learn to kind of block out the noise a little bit with time. When you have a bad game, if you go on Twitter or something, you’re gonna have notifications, but you get good at kind of blocking it out a little bit and focus on what’s right.”
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