William Nylander is getting his minutes by playing on both of Toronto's power-play units. Nylander is also part of a new five-forward look with the man advantage. Easton Cowan will likely have another chance for gold with Team Canada at the World Juniors later this month. The forward was named to Team Canada's selection camp roster on Monday morning. Cowan was among 32 players picked to compete for a spot on Canada's roster for the tournament, which begins on Dec. 26 in Ottawa, Ontario. Canada will play two games against a team of U SPORTS all-stars next week (Dec. 12 and 13) before trimming down the roster. After the selection camp, the team will have a four-day training camp in Petawawa, Ontario, plus three pre-tournament games against Switzerland, Sweden, and Czechia. Fellow Maple Leafs prospect Noah Chadwick wasn't named to the selection camp roster after participating in Team Canada's World Junior Summer Showcase in July. Cowan, set to appear in his second selection camp, has missed the London Knights' last four games with an injury and is listed as day-to-day by the team. The 19-year-old forward is in the midst of a 54-game point streak, the longest unofficial point streak in the OHL since Doug Gilmour's official streak of 55 consecutive games with a point while on the Cornwall Royals in the 1982-83 season. Cowan has 91 points (37 goals, 54 assists) during his 54-game point streak with the Knights, going back to Nov. 24 of last season. In 18 games with London this year, the forward has 14 goals and 11 assists for 25 points. Last year with Team Canada, Cowan scored one goal and one assist in five games. The team had an early exit in 2024, being eliminated in the quarterfinals by Czechia after falling 3-2. Cowan is looking to help push Canada back into medal contention while having more of a leadership role with the team this year. "I just want to show some leadership. I think I bring a lot of leadership this year. I know last year, we (Team Canada) lost, unfortunately. I won an OHL championship, lost in the [Memorial Cup] final," Cowan told reporters, including TSN's Mark Masters, at the Summer Showcase. "I think I have a lot of stuff under my belt that will help me be a leader this year, be someone that the younger guys can ask, look up to a bit. I'm just really excited to get back here, put on that Canada jersey, whether it's a practice jersey or a game jersey, it's still an unreal feeling." The Maple Leafs selected Cowan in the first round (28th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft. He signed an entry-level contract with the club two months later on Aug 11, 2023. Cowan has 176 points (69 goals, 107 assists) in 147 games with the Knights since entering the OHL in 2021.
