Easton Cowan’s junior career is over.  He’s 20, and this past September, he was hoping to make the jump to the Toronto Maple Leafs. He had a mature take. He told us where his game was at.   

“Yeah, I think I could play anywhere in the lineup. I feel like I can make plays, but also bring energy and just play, you know, PK and then maybe eventually one day I’ll be on the power play, but obviously they got a pretty good power play. So just looking to, you know, show that I can kill penalties and put up some points five and five and help the team win.”    

He was going to trust the process. To me, that process is letting him go through camp, play a few preseason games, and then send him to the Toronto Marlies. No matter what. He’s not Matthew Knies. They are different players. Cowan has a high end to his game, but he must get stronger and why rush the kid?   

Could he provide the Leafs with some offense? Yes, will it be the same offense a year after a full or at least a half-season in the AHL? No, the Leafs need to let him make this necessary step and don’t put him into a situation thinking he can help them. It’s a lot of pressure for a 20-year-old.    

Developing at the NHL level isn’t right for most prospects. I know a lot of fans will want him to make the team and the team may have to make a tough decision. But the best decision is always to let him start in the AHL and see how it goes.   

Players know that he’s close and gave him good advice. 

“Not a ton, of all of them just kind of just said, good camp, light it up in London and be ready to go next year. And I felt like I did a good job of listening to them.”  

That happened but it will take more than that. This has been a great year of development for him but don’t throw him into the deep end. Preseason is a type of fool’s gold. I will hear, ‘he doesn’t look out of place’, or ‘he’s noticeable’. Well, that’s not good enough if you want to see the best out of this player over the next decade.