MONTREAL -- Mike Santorelli will play the 314th regular-season game of his NHL career Saturday, but he is still waiting to play his first game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Santorelli will probably get that chance this spring, and it is all but assured that it won’t be with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Santorelli, Daniel Winnik, Cody Franson and perhaps a few others are likely playing their final games of the season for the Maple Leafs. They are three of the most prized rental players available leading up to the NHL Trade Deadline on March 2.
Though it was awkward to discuss the likelihood of playing for another team while standing in the Maple Leafs dressing room at Bell Centre on Saturday, the possibility of making the playoffs for the first time clearly has Santorelli excited as he heads toward unrestricted free agency this summer.
“Absolutely,” Santorelli said. “Everyone wants playoff performers. So if I can get my game up to that level and be in that situation and do well, I think that’s what every player would want to do.”