'He's Proven Everybody Wrong At Every Level': Can Easton Cowan Crack The Maple Leafs Roster Next Season?
Easton Cowan had a big jump in his development with the London Knights last season. But will that translate into a spot in Toronto's opening night lineup?
Some scouts were stunned when the Toronto Maple Leafs selected Easton Cowan with their first-round pick (28th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft. But Mount Brydges, Ontario native proved the club's amateur scouting department correct with an incredible third season with the OHL's London Knights.
In addition to scoring 34 goals and adding 62 assists in 54 games, Cowan won the Red Tilson Trophy as the OHL's Most Outstanding Player while also taking the Wayne Gretzky 99 Award as the OHL Playoffs MVP.
So what was it that led to a significant jump in Cowan's development? It may have been the fact that Cowan stuck around as one of the final cuts at the Leafs' training camp last fall that gave him a bit of a boost.
"Yeah, I think it just helped me a lot," Cowan admitted. "Having the confidence that I could keep up with the big guys really helped me a lot in the OHL."
Speaking after the first day of on-ice activities at the club's 2024 development camp, Cowan was among the players taking on a bit of a leadership role among the 46 players in attendance. After all, this is not the one they call Cowboy's first rodeo at the camp.
At his first camp last summer, Cowan learned some of the habits required to make it in the pros. Another attribute he learned was the ability to never waver in his confidence.
"Just like not letting the last shift get to you," Easton said. "I felt like in my draft year I was letting it get to me a bit too much and I saw some steps there this year where just moving on and playing with confidence each and every shift really helped me."
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So can Cowan carry that over into the NHL? The Maple Leafs certainly have some room for a rookie forward or two to make the jump and earn a spot out of training camp. After 2022 second-round draft pick Fraser Minten made the jump play in four NHL games last season before returning tin junior, the door is certainly open for someone like Cowan to make it.
"I think he's going to make a push. It's always hard to take that jump from junior to the NHL," Maple Leafs Assistant GM of Player Development Dr. Hayley Wickenheiser said of Cowan. "But he's proven everybody wrong at every level, so I don't put it past him.
"He's going to have to come into camp. The defensive aspect of the game will be key for him to be able to check and stay up to the pace of the play, not just the offensive side of the game. He's very close and it will be exciting to watch."
Of course, he'll have the likes of someone like Minten and other players on Toronto's roster to compete with. But depending on the need and role, Cowan might be able to pull it off.
"It would be nice to make it far in training camp. I want to play in the NHL. That's been my goal since Day 1," Cowan said. "That's in mind but I know it's tough to get there. It's going to take a lot of work. So just soaking everything inthis week and bringing it back to London will go a long way.
"I feel like I can bring that to this development camp and use it as confidence."
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