Washington Capitals defenceman Rasmus Sandin underwent surgery on an ACL tear in his right knee on Tuesday and will be sidelined long-term.
The Capitals said a return-to-play timeline “will be determined by his individual progression, with typical recovery from this surgery estimated at 6-9 months.”
A six-month timeline would allow Sandin to return soon after the start of the 2026-27 season, while nine months would sideline the blueliner into January.
General manager Chris Patrick said Monday that Sandin would miss significant time, but did not reveal the nature of the exact injury at that time.
“There will be more of an update later this week but he’s going to miss a decent amount of time,” Patrick said. “It’ll factor into our off-season decisions.”
#Caps defenseman Rasmus Sandin underwent a surgical procedure Tuesday to address the ACL tear in his right knee. Sandin sustained the injury on April 11 against Pittsburgh. A return-to-play timeline will be determined by his individual progression, with typical recovery from this…
— Capitals PR (@CapitalsPR) April 22, 2026
Sandin, 26, missed the team’s final two games after sustaining the injury during the Capitals’ 6-3 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on April 11.
The 5-foot-11, left-shot defenceman had five goals and 29 points in 73 games in Washington last season while averaging 19:12 of ice time. He remains signed at a cap hit of $4.6 million through 2028-29.
Sandin was acquired by the Capitals in February of 2023 from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for defenceman Erik Gustafsson and a first-round draft pick.
Drafted 29th overall by the Maple Leafs in 2018, Sandin has 25 goals and 145 points in 382 career games split between the Maple Leafs and Capitals.
Washington missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2022 23 season after finishing with a 43-30-9 record. They finished three points of the Philadelphia Flyers for the final playoff spot in the Metropolitan Division.
