The Hockey News Morning Skate: Maple Leafs' Cowan Shines, Rantanen's Hat Trick Heroics, And More

Welcome to The Hockey News Morning Skate, where we give a quick recap of all the action from the NHL every weekday morning so you stay up to date.

Tuesday featured an 11-game slate with 22 teams in action, providing a ton of action to recap in this episode.

Let's run through the biggest storylines that emerged from last night, and make sure to check out the video version of this story above.

Kirill Marchenko scored for the Toronto Maple Leafs in his return to Columbus but it was Easton Cowan, Jack Roslovic and Morgan Rielly that each finished with three points in the Buds' 6-2 win over the Blue Jackets.

Cowan picked up a short-handed goal and added two assists, giving him 10 points in 11 games to start the season. This was the second game in a row that the 21-year-old was seen primarily skating on the Maple Leafs' top line alongside Auston Matthews and Jack Roslovic, and the youngster didn't disappoint.

Mikko Rantanen recorded a hat trick that included the overtime winner against the Boston Bruins to secure a 3-2 win for the Dallas Stars. The Finnish winger now has five goals and 11 points, leading the Stars in both categories through the first nine games of the season.

This loss for the Bruins was a blip in what's been a fantastic start to the season, leading the Atlantic Division with a 7-2-1 record while tying the Edmonton Oilers and Vegas Golden Knights for the second-best goal differential in the NHL.

The Los Angeles Kings were the final team to record a win in the 2026-27 NHL season. Adrian Kempe scored twice and Artemi Panarin finished with three points to elevate the Kings to a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals.

Whether or not this win can spark the Kings remains to be seen, but with teams like the Seattle Kraken starting hot and the San Jose Sharks looking to take competitive steps this season, there's not much more room for error.

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