Why isn't Sandin getting a better shot?

BoredBrandonPridham

Registered User
Aug 9, 2011
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I remember a day when this entire board drooled over the detroit model of over ripening prospects in the AHL.

Babcock chose not to play Sandin full time. Now keefe, who knows sandin as a hockey player better than anyone on this planet is choosing not to play him. Just be patient.
 

Kelly

Registered User
Nov 12, 2012
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Dave Feschuk is still a reporter? what?

Well heres hoping after this most recent garbage article I don't hear his name for another 3 years.
 

TheGoldenJet

Registered User
Apr 2, 2008
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Coquitlam, BC
Teams weren't going to take Sandin and Liljegren for a few months, let them take away spots from guys who are there the entire year, and then see them leave in December.

Depends which teams. The NLA, Liiga, even some KHL clubs are fine with this. 3 months of action in any of those leagues would have been preferable to an 11 month break, surely.
 
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Future

Registered User
Feb 8, 2011
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Would love to see him get a shot Saturday night. Even if Dermott’s injury isn’t serious, just give him a game. He either shows you something or he doesn’t.
 
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darrylsittler27

Registered User
Oct 21, 2002
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The most likely scenario is because of the NHL expansion draft, Dubas has gotten some interest on Dermott but you don't give away your defensive depth for cheap, injuries will come. If Pitts. offered us a 2 nd rounder for Dermott, I would hang up. Sandin got covided(no man's land) or whatever. Pulling the trigger and dumping Dermott to make room for Sandin isn't the answer yet. Funny us complaining about defensive depth. Injuries will come or someone will slip up but right now we are winning and I want at least a late first for Dermott.
 

jaric1862

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Jan 14, 2014
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Lehtonen really is the reason he hasn’t gotten a shot. The Leafs have to appease Lehtonen and Barabanov so they don’t bolt off to Europe and they lose their depth.

That being said, it wouldn’t hurt to get Sandin in for a game or two.
 

saltming

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Oct 6, 2015
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Isn't it awesome that we don't have to rush a young guy rushed into the league so we can develop him right?
His iq is there so just needs physical development and that's hard to do while playing. Hopefully he's in by late season and gets some playoff time. If not next season he should be a lock to walk into the top 6
 
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banks

Only got 5/16
Aug 29, 2019
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We have good depth. I'm OK with that.

Sandin, and Liljegren too, will play when they're good enough to win a spot and help the team.
 

Future

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Sandin played 28 games last year. If he would be rushed playing him now then he was super rushed last year. Developed him in the exact way that Dubas said was harmful.

Don’t get how anyone could possibly spin this into a positive. He’s not playing in hockey games, and hasn’t for nearly a year now. How can that be beneficial for anyone’s development? Let alone our top prospect.

Don’t want to hear about him taking this time to get stronger and quicker. He’s had a year to do that. Should be more than fine in that regard.
 

ToneDog

56 years and counting. #FireTheShanaClan!
Jun 11, 2017
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Didn't Sandin take a puck in the face at practice this past week ? Anyway we don;t know if there was a deal with Lehtonen to play him. Sandin has to wait his turn I guess.
 

saltming

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Sandin played 28 games last year. If he would be rushed playing him now then he was super rushed last year. Developed him in the exact way that Dubas said was harmful.
Fair but last year could have been used as an assessment period. He was super sheltered and maybe told what he needed to improve to become a mainstay. Maybe he is developing those things now?
Also, we are much deeper on D this season, so that allows us to give him more time.
 

saltming

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Don’t want to hear about him taking this time to get stronger and quicker. He’s had a year to do that. Should be more than fine in that regard.
Why don't you want to hear it? What if he didn't? Or got stronger but not enough? Faster but just not as fast as needed?
 

stewpac

Registered User
Nov 30, 2015
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Gotta get him in on Monday, makes the most sense. No one has really earned the spot so why not see if sandin can.
 

Stephen

Moderator
Feb 28, 2002
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Don’t get how anyone could possibly spin this into a positive. He’s not playing in hockey games, and hasn’t for nearly a year now. How can that be beneficial for anyone’s development? Let alone our top prospect.

Don’t want to hear about him taking this time to get stronger and quicker. He’s had a year to do that. Should be more than fine in that regard.

If you read between the lines of Keefe talking about pro habits, and how it's Mikko's time, etc. it doesn't feel like the organization is particularly happy with whatever Sandin has been showing whether it's practice, training, etc.
 

Knies iT

Registered User
Mar 6, 2015
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Too many people are reading in to this RE Sandin. The reality is that a 20 year old LHD Sandin is competing with Dermott and Lehtonen for games. They are not going to scratch a young blossoming defender with 166GP, who happens to be one of the team's best defensive blueliners, to justify playing the new shiny toy. Scratching Dermott simultaneously makes your team worse and hampers his development. The NHL is not a development league, the AHL's start date is ambiguous, and the SHL is not accepting players on loan unless they finish out the season in Sweden. It's a weird position.

Keefe's also not going to let an unproven, undersized defender with legitimate areas for improvement (speed, strength, defending) usurp the most coveted European UFA defender who had 20+ teams courting him, after a measly 4GP. What message does that send to future free agents? Dubas will not undermine the recruitment program they've built so well just to rush a prospect. They need to play Lehtonen in as many games as possible early on to determine if he is a) an NHL regular, and b) worth re-signing in the off-season, which could impact their expansion draft decisions (e.g. might make Dermott/Holl more expendable).

The bigger cause for concern is Liljegren, who I totally agree should have been loaned to the SHL because I do not see him playing regular minutes at any point with the current depth, even though he's ready. That league might be a step back for him, but he's looking at 1+ year without games at this point. There's less for him to work on conditioning wise than Sandin, too.
 

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