Some might say that Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Easton Cowan is following in the same footsteps as former star Mitch Marner -- and the ex-Leaf revealed that he was talking with the young prospect all throughout last season.
But, unlike Marner, Cowan did not put up gaudy numbers in junior hockey and actually took a slight step back for his final year with the OHL's London Knights. Sure, the similarities are both playing for the prestigious London team and leading them to the Memorial Cup, but they ultimately seem to stop there.
Given the up-and-down season Cowan experienced, Marner apparently gave Cowan some words of advice after the World Juniors failure that was Team Canada and how to bounceback for the Knights.
🚨🎙️ Former Maple Leaf Mitch Marner on Easton Cowan’s outstanding 24-25 playoff performance, leading the way for London en route to their memorable cup victory:
— Leafslatest (@Leafslatest) August 27, 2025
"Like I said, I was talking to him a lot throughout the year, just checking in and making sure he was staying in the… pic.twitter.com/1obKt2vptI
"Like I said, I was talking to him a lot throughout the year, just checking in and making sure he was staying in the right headspace," Marner said Wednesday. "Sometimes you start questioning things after the World Juniors didn’t go the way everyone wanted it to, and that happens. I told him our team went through the same thing -- we didn’t have a great World Juniors. It gets tough; a lot of people say things and judge you for them. I told him, don’t worry about it. Go to London, do your thing, and win a Memorial Cup -- and he led the way the whole time and got the job done. That was great."
It is difficult for a player of Cowan's ilk to experience a slight decrease in production when everyone thinks he will suddenly dominate the OHL in his final year of junior eligibility. The young winger went from scoring 34 goals and 96 points in 54 games during the 2023-24 season, to last year being able to only score 29 goals and 69 points in 46 games. His goalscoring rate increased, but his overall production suffered -- and it's not like his teammates changed at all; the Knights were largely the exact same team for those two seasons.
Now, Cowan is heading into an even more crucial season. Unless he shines brighter than anyone else during training camp, we will most likely be with the AHL's Toronto Marlies to start the year. But it won't take a lot -- an injury or two on the Leafs and for the 20-year-old winger to score lots of points -- for him to make his way to Scotiabank Arena and make his NHL debut.
Whether or not Marner's advice did him any good, is still to be seen.