TORONTO — It is late June.
Easton Cowan has just finished hoisting the Calder Cup over his head and taking the AHL championship trophy for a half lap. His smile is lighting up Coca-Cola Coliseum. He’s soaking in sweat and in the moment.
Sort of.
Even wrapping the final game of his first pro campaign with a victory, Cowan can’t help but think of what’s next.
“Obviously it feels good,” the 21-year-old says. “I mean, winning is winning, no matter what league it is. It’s super special and fun, especially in this city.
“So, you want to keep winning in Toronto down the road. And right now, enjoy this. But that’s where my goals are at.
“This is the place you want to win, for sure.”
Whereas Cowan’s current Toronto Maple Leafs teammates (Bo Groulx excepted) had their 2025-26 seasons end in disappointment, the Marlies’ run gave him a second wind.
A driver and leader down on the farm, the kid they call “Cowboy” scored eight goals and added 10 assists in the Marlies’ brilliant 22-game playoff run. He was leaned on in elimination games, defensively and offensively. Chipped in on both special teams. Threw his body and mind into the fight.
“For Cowboy, even from the first game he came down with us, to the last game, his leadership grew immensely,” AHL assistant coach Mark Giordano said.
Fast-forward to late September, and the everyday Maple Leaf with the shortest summer and smallest paycheques (Cowan’s $900,000 entry-level cap hit has already been exceeded by buddy Gavin McKenna’s) leads Toronto in points (three), plus/minus (plus-2), and game-winners (one).
Sure, it’s early.
But farm boys rise with the sun.
The buzzing Cowan was the most noticeable Leaf on the sheet in Wednesday’s 2-1 victory over the visiting New York Islanders, helping set up linemate Colton Scissons’ opening goal with a dog-on-bone forecheck, then knocking in the game-winner by driving net-front and converting a rebound off Ilya Sorokin’s pad.
Moreover, he and fellow third-liners Scissons and Nick Paul checked New York’s top line, led by Bo Horvat, and helped kill all four Leafs penalties.
What a difference a year makes.
Cowan’s conviction in Season 2 is palpable. Those extra hours chasing a Calder Cup and reacquainting the former London Knight with a winning environment worked wonders.
“It did a lot. I mean, anytime you’re playing pro in the playoffs helps a lot. So, a lot of confidence heading into this year, and just want to keep it going,” Cowan said.
“Our line was clicking. As soon as you get all four lines going, I mean, it’s fun to play. Everyone’s laughing, having fun, which is good. And we’re all working hard. So, great team win.”
Cowan points to a tattoo of a series of Roman numerals tattooed on the inside of his left forearm. They represent June 1, 2025, the date his Knights captured the Memorial Cup.
Winning matters to the kid.
So, when Cowan was done sipping from the Calder, the pesky winger dedicated his summer to the details, becoming more proficient at puck battles, swifter at plucking rims off walls, and packing on muscle to make sure he’s as strong as possible at his ideal weight of 190 pounds.
Jim Hiller had heard tales of Cowan’s great confidence and relentless motor. But what caught the new Leafs coach’s eye was the second-youngest Leaf’s determination. How early he shows up to the rink to stretch, eat properly, and grind away in the gym.
“Mentally, he really wants it,” Hiller said. “There’s some players in the league that I think he could trend towards. I’m not going to tell you who they are.
“It’s early, and I just kind of have that in my mind. I don’t know where he’s going to go. He’s an exciting young player.”
OK, we’ll name one: Brandon Hagel.
That’s a high bar, to be sure, but the forwards are of similar build and temperament. And Cowan is taking meaningful steps as a two-way menace that can complement top-six players and check hard with the role players.
Hiller crowned Cowan the most noticeable skater after one day of camp and has already bumped him up to John Tavares and William Nylander’s line for stretches in both games this season.
The difference from his rookie season?
“It’s night and day,” raves goalie Anthony Stolarz. “I mean, he’s playing with a lot of confidence, and the defensive aspect of his game is improved as well. He’s getting some PK time out there, and I think that’s just the maturity and just growing as a player.
“The best thing for him was going down to the American League and getting a taste of that playoff action and being able to play his game and dominate. He carried that confidence into the summer, and he's playing a huge role on this team so far.”
Adds Sissons: “He was feeling it tonight. Just a dynamic player. He has the puck on his stick a lot and makes a lot of good plays. So, really blessed to be playing with him right now.”
Hiller envisions Cowan–Paul–Scissons as something more than a traditional checking unit, as a trio that can also make plays and prolong cycles and chip in on offence, too.
“Those three players can score goals,” Hiller noted. “Easton can really be the straw that stirs the drink from an offensive perspective and keep the other team’s best line honest.”
More responsibility?
Bring it on. The Cowboy is riding on a high, and he’s finding momentum not just from his past but from his current teammates and a coach who seems to have a defined role in mind.
“I think just this room. I mean, the vibes are great. Everyone’s positive and welcoming me and Gav, too, as a young guy. Everyone’s been great to us,” Cowan said.
“Some young juice and some veterans, it goes a long way. So, it's been good, and we just want to keep it going, keep having fun.”
Just how much fun can this guy, who has already won at junior and the AHL, have?
“Sky’s the limit with that kid,” Sissons said. “He’s got all the potential in the world.”
Fox’s Fast Five
• Matthew Schaefer, 2026’s unanimous Calder champ, is now wearing an ‘A’ for the Islanders. He only turned 19 this month.
“I didn’t take that decision lightly, but he earned it,” coach Peter DeBoer told reporters.
“What a privilege to coach a player like that. You know, he’s even better live and in person than he is on tape, and I watched a lot of tape of him last year while we were scouting for the Canadian Olympic team. But to actually stand behind the bench those last four games last year with him out there, he’s a real difference-making player. There’s very few of them in the world, and he’s one of them.”
DeBoer revealed that Schaefer was “really close” to making that silver-medal squad as an 18-year-old.
“He was in our discussions right up until the last day. And, in hindsight, if we turned back the clock, (Josh) Morrissey got hurt the first game, he probably could have helped us.”
• Stolarz (.963) was superb in his season debut and first real game action in 175 days, many of which were spent rehabbing.
Remember, Toronto traded away two of its top three goalies over the off-season.
“It’s a vote of confidence to me,” he said. “You look at the turnover, and they want to keep me around. And for me, it’s exciting. I want to be here. I want to play here. And you want to win hockey games.”
• Newly anointed Islanders captain Horvat watched the overhauled Maple Leafs play Montreal Tuesday. His take: “A lot of high-end skill. Their transition game is really good.”
• The Leafs did not honour Matias Maccelli, who was not tendered a qualifying offer following 2025-26, with a Jumbotron acknowledgment.
Maccelli settled for a pay cut in free agency, signing a one-year, $2.25-million deal with the Isles. He’s starting the season on New York’s second line and first power-play unit, but Mathew Barzal is injured.
Perhaps the bar for return-game pomp is rising?
• McKenna Watch!
Tough night territorially for the second line. While McKenna looked more relaxed and made sharp passes — plenty of crisp, cross-seam pucks as the PP2 facilitator — his line, with Nylander and Tavares, was outshot 10-1 and out-attempted 19-3.
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