Cowan has become one of the few remotely positive stories of the Maple Leafs 2025-26 campaign, posting nine goals and 16 assists across 60 NHL games in his rookie year – a workload that reflects the trust he has earned on the team to this point. A heart-and-soul forward in the mold of Travis Konecny, he plays his best hockey in meaningful moments, with two OHL championships and a 2025 Memorial Cup MVP performance to his name. That elevation when the chips are down is a quality that the Maple Leafs hope will eventually carry over to the pro game.

His path forward in Toronto hinges on how the organizations retool takes shape. Cowan projects as a priority piece in that process – a player capable of contributing in a middle six role with top six upside alongside the right supporting cast. His ultimate ceiling will depend in part on his willingness to retain possession against aggressive checking in transition and on the offensive zone cycle, a development area to monitor as he matures physically. If he can continue to work his way to the inside, and endeavor to shoot from scoring areas, the Leafs will have a very intriguing player archetype on their hands – and onethat they haven’t had on the team in a while.

Easton Cowan’s rise within the organization has been astronomical since he was selected 28th overall in 2023. The pick was criticized among draft pundits, as he was excluded from some top-100 lists, and was projected in the second round among plenty of mock drafts. The pick was the first of Brad Treliving’s tenure as the general manager, and Cowan has quickly become the most important prospect, and one of the only ones of consequence, in the system. Cowan has strung together a couple of impressive seasons, posting 93 points in 54 games played in his draft plus one season with two OHL championships and a Memorial Cup to his name.

All the pieces are in place for Cowan to make a run at making the team out of camp. He is likely one who needs more time to marinate with the Toronto Marlies, but he represents an opportunity for the team to use a player on a cheap entry level contract, which they have not had much of in previous years. This makes Cowan a potentially valuable player to the team moving forward, and despite needing to beat someone out to crack the roster, he will almost certainly be given every opportunity to do so.

At the time of writing, Cowan is on a 60-point game streak in the OHL. Cowan was bashed heavily over his World Juniors performance, a tournament in which he led the team in points, in what was more an example of critiquing selected clips at his worst. For people who have watched more than five seconds of Easton Cowan, he’s continued to impress with his strong skating and high hockey IQ. It still seems Cowan could take a bigger step in his overall game, in some ways he still looks like the player he was last season, especially on defense. May make him more middle-six than top-six if he can’t get stronger. Cowan is consistently producing, but there’s still a better player in him.