The future of the Leafs powered the Toronto Marlies to a Calder Cup

The Toronto Marlies are 2026 Calder Cup champions and it was the young players who are setting themselves up for lengthy NHL careers, that really pushed them over the finish line.

With an big 4-2 comeback Game 5 win, the Marlies have been crowned as AHL champions. Toronto faced an early 2-0 deficit against the Chicago Wolves on Friday night at Coca-Cola Coliseum, and thoughts of a series slipping through their fingers started to come up. But, thanks to the key prospects of the Leafs, they were able to close out the series and lift the Cup.

Felix Unger Sorum and Josiah Slavin notched two goals within the first 18 minutes of Game 5. After the Marlies were once up 3-0 in the series and losing Game 4, starting out a very crucial Game 5 like that was not a good feeling. But Landom Sim managed to score his second goal of the playoffs with less than 30 seconds left in the first period to calm some nerves.

Benoit-Olivier Groulx then scored on the power play, assisted by Easton Cowan and William Villeneuve, as the defenseman earned his 20th assist of the playoffs. And then, before the second period was over the Marlies came storming back and Jacob Quillan scored their third consecutive goal to complete the comeback.

And less than two minutes later, Vinni Lettieri scored the Marlies' second power-play goal of the game to make it 4-2. Unfortunately, Unger Sorum scored his second goal of the game with six seconds left in the second period to cut the Marlies' lead in half -- but it did not matter.

Thanks to Artur Akhtyamov standing on his head through the final 20 minutes, the Marlies closed out Game 5 and the series and won the whole dang Calder Cup.

It was the Leafs' prospects who showed their worth in the Calder Cup win

While this Marlies team is very full of AHL veterans like Logan Shaw, Vinni Lettieri, Alex Nylander, and the like; it was really the players who are bound for lengthy NHL careers that proved to be the difference and exactly what the Marlies needed.

All throughout the playoffs, Cowan showed his worth and it was only highlighted by the fact that he finished Game 5 win three assists, to make it a total of eight goals and 18 points in 22 playoff games on his way to winning the Cup. Memorial Cup last year with London, and Calder Cup this year with the Marlies for Cowan.

In addition to Cowan, the other first-round pick of the Leafs played a substantial role as well. It was not too long ago that Ben Danford was trying to win an OHL championship as he was a deadline trade to the Brantford Bulldogs from the Oshawa Generals and that was how he wanted to end his season. It did not happen like that, as the Bulldogs were knocked out in the Conference Final, but that meant that the right-handed defenseman could go and join the Marlies earlier than expected.

Danford finished the playoffs with three points in 16 games but beyond the point total, he looked very effective on both ends of the puck and truly looked like a prospect who was ready to take the next jump. He most likely won't be making the Leafs out of training camp next fall, but if he proves enough, he could certainly be making his NHL debut before this time next year.

And finally, maybe the most important prospect of them all. Artur Akhtyamov looked like a goalie who was ready to battle Dennis Hildeby for a backup job with the Leafs in a couple months. The 24-year-old finished his playoffs with an insane .923 save percentage and 2.22 goals against average through 22 games. He was the player that carried the Marlies through some of the rounds and more than deserves substantial recognition for this team being able to eventually finish on top.

It might not mean much to the Leafs' success or improve their odds of winning the Stanley Cup soon, but the experience that some key prospects gained from an impressive Calder Cup run and victory, is extremely valuable. To see prospects like Cowan score boatloads of points and Akhtyamov stand on his head, only makes us more excited about the future of this team and for training camp to start.

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