The Toronto Maple Leafs have traded defenseman Rasmus Sandin to the Washington Capitals in exchange for defenseman Erik Gustafsson and a 2023 first-round pick.
Nobody saw this one coming.
The Toronto Maple Leafs made some serious waves on Tuesday with yet another eye-catching trade, sending defenseman Rasmus Sandin to the Washington Capitals in exchange for defenseman Erik Gustafsson and a 2023 first-round pick.
The pick, which was originally owned by the Boston Bruins, was sent to the Capitals last week as part of the package to acquire Dmitry Orlov and Garnet Hathaway.
It's a bitter end to what could have been a promising tenure in Toronto for Sandin.
As the first draft pick of the Kyle Dubas era (29th overall in 2018), Sandin joined the Maple Leafs with high expectations. He seemed to meet them early on. The 22-year-old blew through the AHL level and debuted in the NHL earlier than some had predicted, looking quite comfortable in a third-pair role.
In 52 games this season, Sandin has racked up four goals and 16 assists for 20 points while logging a little under 18 minutes in nightly ice time.
Despite his promising start, the Uppsala, Swe. native seemed to stagnate over the past few seasons, with injuries and inconsistency preventing him from graduating to the Leafs' top four and into a more pronounced role.
After a contract stalemate that extended into training camp this season, the relationship between Sandin and the Maple Leafs appeared to be frayed. Now, the two sides are parting as Sandin appeared to be pushed out of the lineup by Jake McCabe's arrival.
In Erik Gustafsson, the Maple Leafs get an offense-first defender who has been on quite the tear this season. In 61 games for the Capitals, Gustafsson has seven goals and 31 assists for 38 points while logging upwards of 20 minutes per night in average ice time and serving as Washington's primary power-play quarterback.
With a glut of defensemen and an extra first-round pick, it's the Maple Leafs are not done yet, trading Pierre Engvall to the New York Islanders for a 2024 third-round pick.