Those familiar with Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Easton Cowan know he has a long list of accolades attached to his name. Just last year, he won the OHL Most Outstanding Player (Red Tilson Award) and the OHL Playoffs MVP (Wayne Gretzky 99 Award).
Tonight, the young star could add another title to his growing list by picking up a single point against the Oshawa Generals. In doing so, Cowan would go down in London Knights' history as the franchise's highest-scoring player in the playoffs.
Cowan scored a pair of goals and added three helpers in game two of the OHL Final, helping London to even the series at one. With those five points, Cowan tied former New York Islander Rob Schremp for the most playoff points in London history at 89.
Thinking back over the great players to don a London Knights' jersey makes Cowan's achievements all the more impressive. He's outscored players like Mitch Marner, Matthew Tkachuk and Corey Perry, all of whom are standouts in the NHL today.
Cowan's numbers are also very competitive when you take points-per-game into account. At 1.5 points per playoff game, Cowan ranks seventh in terms of highest playoff points per game in Knights' history.
Wondering whether Cowan will take sole possession of first away from Schremp feels like a waste of time. He will undoubtedly claim that title. It's much more interesting to speculate about a much loftier goal.
Wayne Groulx, who played for the Soo Greyhounds in the early 1980s, holds the OHL record for most playoff points scored in a single career. Cowan currently sits fourth on the all-time leaderboard, just 13 points behind Groulx.
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The idea of Cowan overtaking Groulx feels unlikely, but let's entertain it for a moment. If the OHL Final ends in five games, Cowan needs to average over four points per game to beat Groulx. If the series goes the distance, that number drops considerably to 2.6 points per game.
Cowan becoming the highest-scoring player in OHL playoffs history is far more achievable in a long series. However, his career scoring average of 1.5 points per playoff game is still far below what he needs to claim that crown.
Historically, Cowan is not a player who scores in bunches. It is well documented that he is a consistent scorer capable of putting up one or two points a game. His incredible 65-game point streak that stretched across last season and this season stands as a perfect testament to how consistently he scores.
As impressive as his stats are, they do not look like those of Anaheim Ducks prospect Beckett Senecke or Chicago Blackhawks prospect Nick Lardis, both of whom were known for regularly scoring in bunches this season.
This is all to say that in order for Cowan to beat out Groulx's record, he would likely need to score 3-4 points multiple times before the end of the OHL Championship series.
Easton Cowan's Historic Point Streak Finally Reaches Its End
Toronto Maple Leafs star prospect Easton Cowan's incredible regular season point streak comes to a close Friday night, Feb. 7, against the Peterborough Petes.
For those who want to be optimists, as anyone interested in a thrilling race to the finish should be, Cowan is currently averaging just shy of 2.3 points per game so far this postseason. That number leaves the door wide open for him to score at the necessary pace to become the highest-scoring player in OHL playoffs history.
Cowan's fate will be tied to that of the London Knights. If the team goes on a run and manages to find a way around Oshawa Generals goaltender Jacob Oster, who has been fantastic through two games, things may just work out.