After another disappointing Toronto Maple Leafs playoff loss, it's time to break up the core four forwards and that might mean moving on from Mitch Marner, who becomes a free agent at the end of the 2024-25 season. Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Easton Cowan was turning heads yet again on Thursday night as the London Knights kicked off the OHL Championship series against the Oshawa Generals with a convincing 8-1 victory in Game 1. Cowan, 18, scored a career-high five points (one goal, four assists) in the first two periods of Game 1 Thursday. Impressively, only one of his five points on the night was a secondary assist. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwyUXG6icGA[/embed] The achievement marked the most points by a Knights player in a playoff game since 2016 when both Mitch Marner (Toronto Maple Leafs) and Matthew Tkachuk (Florida Panthers) each reached the milestone in a game. Cowan recorded a point on the first five goals of the game, bringing his playoff point total to eight goals and 16 assists for 24 points in 15 games. Over the last eight games, Cowan has scored 17 points (six goals, 11 assists). The right-winger was awarded the Ontario Hockey League’s Red Tilson Trophy as voted by OHL writers and broadcasters for the Most Outstanding Player after his stellar play in the 2023-24 regular season. His campaign was highlighted by a 36-game point streak (42 games if you include the postseason) that stretched from November 25th, 2023 until March 24th, 2024 – the longest point streak since Bill Bowler in 1994-95. Aside from representing Team Canada at the 2024 World Junior Championship in Sweden, Cowan had a career-high 96 points in 54 regular season games, surpassing his 53-point total in 2022-23. The Maple Leafs drafted the Mount Brydges, Ontario, native with their 28th pick in round one of the 2023 NHL draft. Many were quick to write off the selection, but Cowan has simply taken his game to another level on a forceful Knights team this season while continuing his strong play into the postseason. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEO2aqS-W3Y[/embed] On top of two sweeps in the first two rounds of the OHL playoffs against the Flint Firebirds and Kitchener Rangers, the Knights knocked off the Saginaw Spirit in six games before a finals matchup with the Generals. Game 2 of the OHL Final is set to take place on Saturday with the winner of the series going to the Memorial Cup in Saginaw, Michigan. Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAwNTk1MTUxMDE2NDM2ODQ0/cf1808c0-6a82-4298-9049-3eb2eae105b0.jpg] Related Report: Maple Leafs Captain John Tavares Joins Hockey Canada at the IIHF World Hockey Championship [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/latest-news/report-maple-leafs-captain-john-tavares-joins-hockey-canada-at-the-iihf-world-hockey-championship] Report: Other NHL Clubs Already Reaching Out to Maple Leafs About Availability of Mitch Marner [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/latest-news/report-other-nhl-clubs-already-reaching-out-to-maple-leafs-about-availability-of-mitch-marner] Following Sheldon Keefe’s Dismissal Who Will be The Next Head Coach of the Maple Leafs? Here are the Top Candidates [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/latest-news/following-sheldon-keefes-dismissal-who-will-be-the-next-head-coach-of-the-maple-leafs-here-are-the-top-candidates] News from THN.com Why is the NHL's Coaching Carousel Spinning Like Never Before? [https://thehockeynews.com/news/why-is-the-nhls-coaching-carousel-spinning-like-never-before] Dancing in the Moonlight: Funniest Reactions to the Bruins and Panthers' Heated Third Period [https://thehockeynews.com/news/dancing-in-the-moonlight-funniest-reactions-to-the-bruins-and-panthers-heated-third-period] NHL Draft Lottery: What Macklin Celebrini Can Bring to the San Jose Sharks? [https://thehockeynews.com/news/nhl-draft-lottery-what-macklin-celebrini-can-bring-to-the-san-jose-sharks]
