Easton Cowan’s worth to Maple Leafs rising quick

TORONTO — The Toronto Maple Leafs misplaced one other hockey sport, and the youngest amongst them carried the burden of a squandered level as he walked out of the rink.

“I take responsibility. I got to bury one,” Easton Cowan lamented, following a hard-fought 3-2 extra time defeat to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

“If I bury one of them, we could’ve won the game. So, that’s the unfortunate part. But just gotta stay positive.”

Sure, Cowan has been a tad unfortunate by way of his first 13 NHL video games, changing on simply considered one of his first 24 pictures.

But he’s additionally 20 years previous and, partly in response to Toronto’s damage rash, received requested to skate greater than 20 minutes Thursday.

When it involves the phrases Cowan and burying this season, his first as knowledgeable, many figured we’d be speaking about stuffing unproven expertise within the minors.

Not vital scoring possibilities in what instantly really feel like pressing mid-November video games towards mediocre opponents.

Sure, in an ideal world, ‘Cowboy’ could be afforded time to study the ropes within the AHL. 

But the local weather in Leafland today is way from good — six regulars sat out for this one — and that horse has lengthy left the barn.

As a prized product of Leafs coach Craig Berube’s good good friend, Dale Hunter, in close by London, Cowan had a leg up in coaching camp.

And regardless of just a few tough outings, and one two-game stint on the farm (the GM’s name, not the coach’s), the energetic winger is swiftly establishing himself as considered one of Berube’s extra trusted skaters.

So impactful was Cowan Thursday that he rightfully earned a mid-game promotion to the highest line alongside William Nylander and John Tavares. He was thrown over the boards within the closing minute of a tied contest and once more in 3-on-3 with priceless factors on the road.

It speaks to the child’s confidence and inside normal that ripping 4 pictures, organising Tavares’s go-ahead purpose, throwing a pair of hits, blocking a pair pictures, and ending a team-best plus-2 isn’t sufficient.

They misplaced, and Cowan didn’t discover the again of Jet Greaves’ web.

“Yeah, it’s good I’m getting out there, but I got to capitalize,” Cowan stated. “I’m getting chances. I just got to bury. I got to bury one of them, since I’m out there a lot.”

We’ll entertain the argument that it positive could be swell if Cowan may play all conditions for the Marlies and enter the present with extra expertise battling grown-ups beneath his belt.

But Berube wants W’s now, and it’s turning into more and more clear that Cowan offers him a greater probability of securing them.

“He’s come a long way,” stated Tavares, considering again to Cowan’s fourth-line shifts in pre-season. “You can see his potential to learn the sport and make little performs, similar to he did on my purpose. Like, he simply lays it in there, not too fast, simply in the fitting spot with the fitting tempo on it, and simply a straightforward play for me to place in. 

“And he seems to be stronger on the puck, absorbing contact, things like that. And you saw it throughout the game. I thought it was evident in overtime as well. So, yeah, he’s playing really well. And credit to him. He’s not tried to do too much, focus too much on things offensively, just be consistent with this game in all areas.” 

No Leaf tilted the ice as aggressively as Cowan did Thursday; Toronto outshot Columbus 14-4 and out-attempted the Jackets 32-14 when the freshman hit the sheet.

“Watching him even over the last couple games, I’ve seen him grow a lot and getting more confidence out there,” Joseph Woll stated. “He’s gonna be a special player, I think, for a while.”

If the Maple Leafs have performed an excessive amount of vanilla hockey by way of their first six weeks, Cowan injects a swirl of flavour.

He’s younger and speedy, assured and easygoing. As fast to grab a veteran’s ice time as he’s to assert possession of a slender loss.

“He’s taken some good steps from Day 1,” Berube stated. “He’s like a dog on a bone out there, for me. Like, he just works and skates and sees the ice extremely well. He’s being a lot heavier on pucks and making good decisions with the puck. I thought he played a really good game tonight.”

And there will probably be extra to come back.

• With the Blue Jackets flying from Winnipeg to Toronto Tuesday evening, Adam Fantilli was gifted a complete Wednesday at dwelling.

“I got to go from the airport straight home, which never happens,” stated the native of Nobleton, Ont. “Got to wake up in my childhood bed. My mom made breakfast. It was kind of cool. It was a good time.”

The Fantillis had about 30 family and friends over for a giant dinner, but it surely’s not as if the 21-year-old’s dad and mom are banking on him shifting again into his teenage bed room anytime quickly.

“No, they actually just finished a renovation like four months ago,” Fantilli stated. “All my stuff’s gone. 

“It’s in a box in the basement.”

Belly filled with dwelling cookin’, Fantilli was probably the most harmful man on the ice: two objectives, together with the game-winner, a major help, plus a few emphatic celebrations.

• Depth D-man Dakota Mermis scored his first purpose as a Maple Leaf — and first within the NHL in 635 days.

Benches love themselves an unlikely scorer.

“They’re excited,” Berube stated. “He’s very well-liked on our team. Solid guy. You know, he’s come in and done a good job here for us with the injuries. He’s played pretty well.”

At even-strength, shot makes an attempt have been 14-6 in favour of Toronto when the third pair of Mermis and Troy Stecher have been on the ice.

• The Leafs are caught in one other 0-for-10 power-play drought. Their season is barely 21 video games previous, they usually have already got three separate four-game stretches with no power-play purpose. 

At least they’re trying extra harmful at 5-on-4.

“Our power-play has been building, too,” Tavares stated. “We gotta find a way on the right side of the special-teams battle here to help us out.”

• Props to Scott Laughton for gleaning the silver lining in getting sidelined by a suspected concussion, simply 4 durations after he returned from a broken foot that had already stored him out a month: “It gave my other injury a little bit more time to heal.”

Laughton was a beast all evening: 4 pictures, 72 per cent within the dot, two hits, the most important block of the sport, and Toronto’s hardest-working penalty killer.

• Frequent scratch Yegor Chinakov needs a commerce out of Columbus, however he’s not doing himself any favours.

The 24-year-old proper wing is minus-4 with no level in his previous 9 video games. Returning to the Jackets’ lineup in Toronto, he was however a blip: zero pictures whereas skating a team-low 8:49.