Toronto Maple Leafs fans have been waiting for Rasmus Sandin to establish himself as a full-time NHL player and the past five games have shown that he was worth the wait.
Since Zach Bogosian was knocked out of the lineup in mid-April, Sandin has stepped up and fit in nicely despite hardly playing any games over the past year, accumulating with him skating a career-high 21:39 of ice time in Thursday’s win over the Vancouver Canucks.
“I’m just more used to it,” Sandin said of the success in his second stint with the team during an appearance on Hockey Central on Sportsnet 590 The Fan. “I just feel a lot more comfortable coming to the rink, stepping on the ice. I’m a year older, I’ve gained a lot of muscle on my body. And I just know a bit more how everything works and it’s been going well here the first couple games.”
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The Maple Leafs drafted Sandin 29th overall in 2018 with the expectation that he would follow Morgan Rielly’s path and become a steady, smooth-skating defenceman with offensive upside. That profile has been on full display in his second stint with the team as Sandin has collected three assists in six games this season, and posted a plus-six rating despite facing tougher matchups than he did earlier in his career. He had eight points in a 28-game trial run last season.
The 21-year-old is finding this success despite being limited to only two games over the past 13 months due to the pandemic and a foot injury. During his time away from competitive games, Sandin says he focused on things he could control, such as bulking up his body and improving his conditioning.
“Every time you’re out for that long of time you think you’re going to lose the touch of playing hockey. Everything you want is just to play,” Sandin said. “It was more tough mentally than physically. During this time I had a lot of time to build up my body. Mentally it was more tough because you just want to go on the ice and play every game that you can.”
With the Maple Leafs now safely in a playoff spot, the team can use its final six games to rest regulars and audition players for the final roster spots in the post-season. That should give Sandin a few more chances to show the team’s coaches what he can do and further cement his place in the lineup.
You can listen to Sandin’s full interview in the audio player below, where he touches on being teammates with Joe Thornton and T.J. Brodie and reflects on his time with the OHL’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.
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