The Capitals blueliner signed a five-year, $23 million extension on Wednesday.
ARLINGTON, V.A. — For Washington Capitals defenseman Rasmus Sandin, Wednesday felt a little bit like a dream.
The 23-year-old blueliner put pen to paper on Wednesday morning, inking a five-year, $23 million extension to remain in the District. Looking back a year ago, something like this didn't seem realistic for Sandin, who was still coming into his own and hadn't completely cracked the Toronto Maple Leafs' top 6.
"It all started a year ago when I got here, and the organization really showed a belief in me and gave me a big opportunity. I love it here. Hard to believe still that it's done," Sandin said.
Washington picked up Sandin prior to the trade deadline last year, and since then, he's transformed into a top-4 blueliner and key piece of the D-Corps.
Sandin had 15 points in 19 games to close out 2022-23, and in his first full season with the Capitals in 2023-24, he has 20 points in 53 games and has heated up in the second half following a somewhat slow start.
For Sandin, getting trust from the coaching staff and organization has worked wonders for his game.
"I love this organization and just living here... It's something you've been dreaming about and hoping for, but you never really thought it was going to happen. It did and I'm very happy about it," Sandin said, adding that extension talks had been on and off before speeding up over the last couple of days.
Sandin hopes that the extension will not just carry him through the next five years, but has the potential to go even further as he aims to become a future core member of the group. He's one of three players signed through 2029, joining Tom Wilson and Aliaksei Protas.
"I signed a five-year deal because I want to be here for the five years. Hopefully, it's not just the five years; hopefully, it'll be longer, too," Sandin said. "As I always am, I'm usually trying to take it day by day and try to get better every single day and hopefully take on a little bit of a bigger role in the locker room and become more of a leader, too. But I'm very excited about it."