Rasmus Sandin’s Knee Injury Expected To Alter Capitals’ 2026 Offseason Plans

Washington Capitals defenseman Rasmus Sandin underwent a surgical procedure to address an ACL tear in his right knee on April 22, as announced by the team via social media. With a six-to-nine-month recovery timeline, Sandin could return as early as the start of the 2026-27 regular season, which means Capitals general manager Chris Patrick might have altered his plans heading into the 2026 offseason.  

Chris Patrick Speaks on Sandin’s Injury

Sandin, 26, scored five goals and 29 points in 73 games this season. He was injured during a collision with Pittsburgh Penguins forward Justin Brazeau on April 11 and missed the final two games of Washington’s playoff push. “He’s going to miss a decent amount of time,” Patrick told NHL.com. “It’ll factor into our offseason.”

Sandin has 97 points through 242 games since he was acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs as part of a trade for Erik Gustafsson in February 2023. In his career, the left-handed defenseman has scored 25 goals and 145 points over seven NHL seasons. 

Sandin has two points in 16 postseason games and has recorded one assist in 11 playoff games with the Capitals and a plus/minus rating of minus-1. He collected his only postseason point with the team against the Montreal Canadiens in a 6-3 loss during Game 3 of the 2025 Eastern Conference First Round – a secondary assist on Connor McMichael’s game-opening goal. It was the only game the Capitals lost in that five-game series win. 

The Swedish-born defenseman scored his only playoff goal as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs in May 2021. He added an insurance goal on the power play against Carey Price and the Canadiens in a 5-1 victory in Game 2 of their Round 1 series in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs to tie up the series. Toronto won the next two games to take a three-to-one series lead, but Montreal fought back with overtime wins in Game 5 and Game 6 before handing the Maple Leafs a 3-1 loss to claim the series in Game 7. 

How Will Sandin’s Injury Alter Capitals’ Offseason Plans? 

Washington has a projected $36.5 million in cap space heading into the 2026 offseason, according to PuckPedia. Sandin is in the second year of a five-year, $23 million contract signed in March 2024. While the annual average value (AAV) is $4.6 million, the NHL fast-tracked changes to the long-term injured reserve (LTIR) rules this season that limit the amount of cap relief teams can receive.

The new rules limit relief to a maximum of the past season’s average league salary, a figure that was at $3.8 million for 2024-25. Washington would only receive full relief for Sandin’s salary if he were unable to play at all next season, including the 2027 NHL Playoffs. 

Related: Alex Ovechkin Speaks at Capitals Final Media Availability of 2025-26 Season 

With Trevor van Riemsdyk and Timothy Liljegren headed towards unrestricted free agency, management already has to deal with adding a defender to play alongside Jakob Chychrun, Martin Fehervary, Matt Roy, Declan Chisholm, Dylan McIlrath and Cole Hutson. Sandin had the flexibility to play minutes on the right side, so watch for the Capitals to scour the market for a right-shot defenseman.

While a reunion with John Carlson doesn’t seem likely, given his unexpected departure at the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline, Washington could look into right-side options like Darren Raddysh or Rasmus Andersson if they are willing to pay a high price this summer.

With Hutson graduating to the NHL, the Capitals are looking at a fairly thin defensive prospect pool. Louie Belpedio, a journeyman with the team’s American Hockey League affiliate Hershey Bears, has 476 minor league games under his skates and could be an option.

While it might be a season too early in their projected development plan, there could be an opportunity for right-handed prospects Leon Muggli or Cam Allen heading into training camp. Muggli, 19, recorded seven points in 27 games this season for the Bears, while also spending time with Switzerland’s Under-20 (U20) national team. Allen, 22, scored seven points in 22 games for Hershey, but he underwent shoulder surgery in February that ended his season early. 

Addressing Sandin’s vacancy on the backend will likely take more than a few weeks to play itself out. The Capitals have some young options to lean on, but it will be worth keeping an eye on the draft and free agency to see how management reworks the defense heading into next season, especially if Sandin isn’t available at the beginning of October.