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Has Easton Cowan Earned Long-Term Stay on Maple Leafs’ top line?
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- Has Easton Cowan Earned Long-Term Stay on Maple Leafs’ top line?
Gerry Angus-Imagn Images
Since the loss of Mitch Marner this summer, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube has been trying to find a new partner for top-line stalwarts Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies . Max Domi was tried during camp for a while, then newcomer Matias Maccelli was given the role for the first two games of the season. But neither of those options stuck.
Now, after an impressive two-game introduction to the National Hockey League, has rookie Easton Cowan earned a long-term stay with Knies & Matthews? That's the hot topic of conversation around Leafs Nation right now.
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And with good reason. Berube heaped a ton of praise on his 20-year-old rookie after Tuesday night's 7-4 win over the Nashville Predators .
'(Cowan) is a dog on a bone out there for me': Berube
"I think he really supports the puck well with those guys and makes a lot of little plays that maybe go unnoticed to a lot of people, but I notice it," said Berube. "He's a dog on a bone out there for me. He hounds everything, gets pucks back, strips people… It seems like that line is forming some chemistry with him".
Sounds like Berube's kind of player, alright.
Other veteran observers around the team are also singing Cowan's praises, and his fit with Matthews & Knies.
Nick Alberga of The Leafs Nation podcast says that Cowan has brought an "F.U." attitude to the first line.
I think there's a lot more 'F.U.' in the game of Easton Cowan… He can make plays, he can finish, he can do a lot of the little things that you need, and he's not afraid to go into the dirty areas.
"For two games, he hasn't looked out of place," continued Alberga. "I think that's a really difficult position to start your NHL career, with two absolute studs like Knies and Matthews. But if he continues to set them up the way he is, finding opportunities and cycling the puck, creating something out of nothing and forcing turnovers, he's gonna get in the good graces of Craig Berube's books really, really quickly."
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In two games, Cowan has apparently already done that. He's produced a point and a plus/minus rating of +2. Additionally, he's also handed out five hits, proving he's ready for the physical nature of the NHL game. All of that in 14:05 average ice time.
On TSN's First Up, former Leaf Carlo Colaiacovo and Aaron Korolnek echoed the same sentiments.
"You can see why Craig Berube loves Easton Cowan so much. When you factor in everything he does, with the forecheck and the physicality, he kind of represents something that the Maple Leafs don't really have in that spot next to Matthews and Knies."
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It sounds like that 'dog on a bone' has earned himself a much longer leash on Toronto's first line.
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