When training camp opens in September, the Toronto Maple Leafs will almost certainly not have Mitch Marner in attendance for the first time in a decade, but we will not know what new faces will be in attendance. One player vying for a spot on the opening night roster in his third camp will be winger Easton Cowan.
The 20-year-old has a great deal in common with Marner, who both won the Red Tilson Trophy (for the OHL’s most valuable player), the OHL First All-Star Team, and the Wayne Gretzky 99 Award for playoff MVP, the Ed Chynoweth Trophy, and the Memorial Cup All-Star Team as members of the London Knights. After losing to Saginaw in the Memorial Cup Final last year, the Knights earned another shot on Friday with a 5-2 victory over Moncton, giving Cowan the chance to add one more common thread to his hockey resume, a Memorial Cup title in his final junior game.
Cowan did not match his offensive totals with London during the regular season, dropping from 96 points in 2024 to 69 points (29 goals, 40 assists) in 46 games, but his numbers have improved when it counted in the postseason, increasing from 34 to 39 points (13 goals, 26 assists) in 17 games, including a goal and assist on Friday.
The Mount Brydges, ON native is eligible to play in the American Hockey League next season, but it is likely that he will get a long look at camp and a fair chance to make the Leafs, but both GM Brad Treliving and head coach Craig Berube will be extremely careful not to rush Cowan into the fray for fear of putting him into the position of having to replace the departing All-Star winger.
