Reports that Leafs' young defenseman Rasmus Sandin could be on the move

NHL insider Elliotte Friedman made a bit of a surprise report earlier today when he floated the possibility of a Rasmus Sandin trade for the Toronto Maple Leafs this offseason.

Sandin is a pending restricted free agent and it's not exactly a secret that the Leafs are in a salary cap crunch. This, along with some intel from league sources, had Friedman reporting on a possible trade out of Toronto for Sandin.

From Friedman's 32 Thoughts Podcast:

Quote...Sandin, he needs a new contract and TOR doesn't have a lot of space. I think that they like him as a player, I think he's enjoyed being a Maple Leaf and I don't believe he's asked for a trade or anything like that but I've had a couple of people say to me, watch where this goes in terms of does Toronto feel they have to create room for him? Is he concerned about his spot and also is there a deal here that makes sense?

- Elliotte Friedman

Sandin is just 22 years old and has been pretty stellar to start his NHL career.

He put up give goals and 16 points in 51 games with the Leafs this past season after being drafted 29th overall by the Leafs back in 2018.