Toronto Maple Leafs Easton Cowan Continues CHL Domination

Toronto Maple Leafs top prospect Easton Cowan has led his London Knights to a perfect 3-0-0 record through the round robin at the 2024 Memorial Cup.

The first round selection by the Toronto Maple Leafs at the 2023 NHL Entry Draft capped off the round robin play by scoring the game winning goal over the host Saginaw Spirit with just over a minute left in regulation with a quick release over the glove hand of Spirit goalie Andrew Oke.

Cowan would polish off the game with an empty net goal a minute later to seal the victory 4-2 and cap off a three-point game after collecting a primary assist in the first period on a powerplay goal.

With the victory the London Knights will automatically move into the Memorial Cup Final that will take place Sunday June 2. The Knights will wait for the winner of the the semi-final game Friday night between the Spirit and Moose Jaw Warriors.

Toronto Maple Leafs Easton Cowan Continues CHL Domination

As storylines go, if the Knights and Spirit were to play each other it would be an exciting game. The two teams squared off a few weeks ago in the Western Conference final of the OHL playoffs where London took down Saginaw. The Knights would also be the villains playing against the host team for Canada's biggest junior hockey championship.

Playing against the host city would be something the Maple Leafs prospect would thrive on as Cowan has seemed to enjoy taking on a role of antagonizing other teams and their fans throughout the playoffs.

After scoring the game winner on Wednesday night he stood at the glass staring into the Saginaw crowd with little emotion. While this type of attitude could rub some hockey fans the wrong way, this is a characteristic that teams like Florida, Tampa Bay and Boston have had that could be a welcomed trait that Craig Berube could use on his team.

After going pointless in the first game of the Memorial Cup playoffs, Cowan has now collected five points in his last two games and has 34-points during his 18 game playoff run while just turning 19-years old last week.

Cowan is proving over and over throughout the playoffs that there is not much left for him to do in the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League and with no option to go to the American Hockey League, a spot on the left side on one of the Maple Leafs forward lines may be best for him and the organization.