Major announcement drops regarding Leafs prospects Easton Cowan and Fraser Minten

Everyone was expecting 2022 2nd round pick Fraser Minten to get the call for Team Canada, but prior to the start of the 2023-24 OHL season, nobody was expecting Easton Cowan to be on Canada's radar. However, after an electric start with the London Knights, not only has Cowan made Team Canada, he'll actually be playing in a prominent role, if today's exhibition lineup is any indication.

The Canadian World Junior Team took part in an exhibition team today, and as TSN's Mark Masters pointed out this afternoon, both Cowan and Minten slotted in very high for Canada. Per Masters, Cowan slotted in on the top line, playing left wing next to Conor Geekie and Matthew Savoie. Meanwhile, Minten shifted over from his usual center position, also slotting in on the left wing, forming a formidable 2nd line with 2024 projected 1st overall pick Macklin Celebrini and 2022 draftee Jordan Dumais.

As surprising as it was to see Cowan make the team, I don't think ANYONE saw him landing a role on the top line. Cowan himself didn't even feel as though he had a strong selection camp for Team Canada, but obviously the coaching staff sees something in him that they felt warranted giving him a premium roster spot to start the tournament.

Of course, there's still time for the line combinations to change some before the tournament opens up next week, but as of right now, it appears as though these two promising Maple Leafs prospects are projected to play key roles in the top six for what should be a very exciting Canadian team.