Maple Leafs restricted free agent might price himself out of Toronto
Hockey reporter Elliote Friedman was on his 32 Thoughts Podcast sharing the latest news on Maple Leafs' defenceman Rasmus Sandin's contract negotiations. The Leafs aren't going to be able to get Sandin signed at the same number as rookie standout Timothy Liljegren, like they'd hoped. Friedman thinks Sandin sees his value as closer to that of Adam Boqvist (who signed for $2.6M x 3).
Boqvist played in 52 games last season scoring 11 goals and 22 points in his first season in Columbus. He averaged 17:02 TOI playing the point on the Blue Jackets' 2nd power play unit. Sandin put up similar numbers in 51 games. He had 5 goals and 11 assists while averaging 16:58 per night.
With Toronto's cap situation currently it would be tough to see Sandin get that high of an AAV. He is currently fourth on the depth chart for the left side his preferred position. Morgan Rielly, Jake Muzzin and Mark Giordano are all signed to multi year contracts.
The Leafs currently have $756,884 in cap space available. The 29th pick in 2018 doesn't have a ton of leverage in the negotiations. He doesn't qualify for arbitration rights. I feel the most likely outcome will be a deal for one to two years at less than $2 million AAV. It may take awhile for both parties to meet in the middle unless the rarely used offer sheet tactic is brought out to force a decision out of Toronto.
| POLL | ||
If the Leafs lock up Sandin long term who from the blue line is getting traded? | ||
| Justin Holl | 54 | 49.5 % |
| Jake Muzzin | 26 | 23.9 % |
| Multiple | 29 | 26.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
