Easton Cowan Not Moving Up The Lineup, Despite Hot Start for Maple Leafs
· Yahoo Sports
With all the fuss about newcomers Kirill Marchenko, Gavin McKenna and Sergei Bobrovsky, and the usual hype around Auston Matthews, Easton Cowan seemed like a forgotten man coming into the 2026-27 season for the Toronto Maple Leafs. That is clearly not the case anymore after the first two games of the season.
Cowan has been the most impressive Leaf on the ice, playing the best hockey of his young career. He’s been killing it on the third line, but is he due for a promotion?
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Not according to the latest word from head coach Jim Hiller. He likes what he’s been seeing of Cowan lining up with center Nick Paul and forward Colton Sissons. The line has five points through two games, with Cowan leading the way with a goal and two assists.
Jim Hiller is keeping Easton Cowan on the third line with Nick Paul and Colton Sissons pic.twitter.com/c2ugHnYKpJ
— Daily Faceoff Toronto (@dfotoronto) October 2, 2026
Hiller seems to be biding by the old standby, “If it ain’t broke…”
“We really like the line. Sometimes you can overthink things & change everything around. Or you just say, you know what, they’re good, so let’s just keep them together.”
Easton Cowan’s stock is rising for Maple Leafs
Where things stand now around the Buds’ sophomore forward is a far cry from where they were earlier in the summer. Insider Elliotte Friedman reported this week that Cowan’s name was out there in a couple of trade scenarios at one point. But that has all changed.
“I think there were a couple of things in the offseason that they were considering that could potentially have Cowan involved,” he said on 32 Thoughts. ”(But) I did hear this week that even before the puck dropped that Cowan’s stock in the organization was way up and that Toronto’s desire to move Cowan has really decreased. They’re like ‘This guy’s a player.’”
Cowan has been proving his winning mentality the past few years. His last two seasons in junior hockey, he helped lead the London Knights to two OHL titles and the Memorial Cup Championship. In 2025, en route to the Canadian junior hockey crown, he racked up a whopping 13 goals and 39 points in 17 games in that postseason run. Then as his rookie season with the Leafs was coming to an end last spring, he was sent down to the Marlies of the AHL to help with their playoff run. He registered 18 points in 22 games, as the team went on to win the Calder Cup.
Cowan has taken that championship feeling right into the new season with the Leafs. “I mean, anytime you’re playing pro in the playoffs, it helps a lot. So, a lot of confidence heading into this year, and I just want to keep it going. It felt great to get that (Calder Cup) win for sure.”
For now, vaunted No. 1 overall draft pick McKenna is getting his feet wet in the NHL on Toronto’s second line with John Tavares and William Nylander. So far, it’s been a work in progress. McKenna has looked like the 18-year-old that he is, adjusting to playing at the top level, with men. Cowan did slide up to take his spot on that line for a couple of shifts over the first two games, and who knows how that all will shake out going forward.
For now, Cowan is rising to a new level in the NHL, even if he’s still on the third line for the Leafs.
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