Since being traded from the Buffalo Sabres to the San Jose Sharks at the trade deadline, fans have had the chance to see Evander Kane in the playoffs for the first time ever. Well, he debuted with a bang: In a 3-0 Game 1 win over the Anaheim Ducks, Kane potted two of his team’s goals. Of course, Kane has been waiting on this opportunity for some time.

Although he’s still relatively young at 26 years old, Kane has been around in the NHL for nine seasons, all without making the playoffs once. Until Thursday’s Game 1, he had played 574 regular season games, which fell just shy of Jeff Skinner’s 579 among active players without playoff appearances:

With nine goals and five assists through 17 regular season games with the Sharks, Kane has played very well for his new team, and now he gets to take his talent to the postseason for the first time in his career. No doubt, Kane has been looking forward to this moment, especially since he seems to believe that his game is well-suited for the style of play in the playoffs.

In an interview with the Washington Post earlier this week, he declared himself a “playoff player.”

“I’ve said it in the past: I think I’m a playoff player. I’ve watched the playoffs and when I look at the style of play and it’s something I was jealous because I wasn’t involved in it. Now I get that opportunity and I have to back those words up.” —Evander Kane

The Sharks-Ducks series shapes up as a close one, at least on paper, so Kane is going to have his hands full preventing his first appearance in the playoffs from being a short-lived one. Stealing Game 1 on the road, at least, is a promising start.

h/t Devin Stephens on Twitter