Steven Lorentz: Professional hockey player, precise prognosticator.
The Maple Leafs forward’s enthusiasm for playing in Toronto is obvious for anyone who has been around the team or watches his interviews and it’s something that Lorentz apparently was building for years.
After Lorentz — who already is becoming a fan favourite with his industrious ways after earning a contract in camp on a PTO — scored in the Leafs’ 4-2 win in New Jersey against the Devils on Thursday night, his sister Steph posted to X (formerly Twitter) a photo from one of Lorentz’s school yearbooks.
Beside the photo, Steven answered “Where I’ll be in 15 years” with “Playing in the NHL (with the Leafs).”
As Steph noted, the photo was from 15 years ago while Lorentz was growing up in Kitchener-Waterloo.
The Leafs also posted a photo of Lorentz in childhood, sitting in bed clad in Leafs pyjamas with a poster of Mats Sundin on the wall behind him. That brought to mind the photo of John Tavares that went viral in 2018, in which he is sleeping under Maple Leafs covers.
Lorentz, now 28, had a text from his dad, Mark, waiting for him after he scored in the victory in Newark.
“I checked my phone and he said ‘How are you going to top that on Saturday night (in the Leafs’ home opener against the Pittsburgh Penguins)?’” Lorentz said with what is becoming his trademark smile. “I said ‘I don’t know man, we’ll see.’
“I don’t know if we’re going to be doing this every single night, but I’ve got my foot on the gas and I’m feeling really good right now. I’m just hoping to keep this going.”
Lorentz eventually found his way to the Leafs after playing for the Florida Panthers and winning the Stanley Cup with them last spring, the San Jose Sharks and the Carolina Hurricanes. Several years in the minors came after a four-year junior career with the Peterborough Petes.
X: @koshtorontosun