Rasmus Sandin arrives at Leafs training camp, lines up next to a surprising D partner

It's been a quick turnaround for Leafs blueliner Rasmus Sandin, who signed a new 2-year deal worth $1.4M per season on Thursday morning, hopped on a flight on Friday and returned to Toronto to re-join his teammates and get in on the training camp grind on Sunday.

Sandin had been holding out citing a lack of opportunity and an unclear role, not wanting to play on his weak side as the reasons for not wanting to sign. Well, with all of the injuries that the Leafs are currently dealing with, especially on the blueline, the opportunities will certainly be there for the 22-year-old. Somewhat surprisingly, Sandin was lined up next to Jake Muzzin during Sunday's practice - on the right side.


Perhaps with Mark Giordano and Morgan Rielly publicly declaring that they'd be fine with taking shifts on the right side opened Sandin's eyes to the fact that playing both sides can actually be a benefit to both the team and the player. For the team, it's just added flexibility. For the player, it shows an additional layer of versatility and can provide additional opportunity and more ice time.