Dale Hunter Makes Bold Proclamation Regarding Top Leafs Prospect Easton Cowan

There's no argument needed when discussing Easton Cowan's rank amongst the Toronto Maple Leafs prospect pool. The 20-year-old towers over his competitors, but there remains a debate as to whether or not he can crack the opening night roster for the 2025-26 season.

The Maple Leafs underwent a lot of changes this off-season that started with the departure of Mitch Marner and ended with GM Brad Treliving addressing depth and quantity amongst his forward group.

Even with the acquisitions of Dakota Joshua, Matias Maccelli, Nic Roy, and Michael Pezzetta, there remains a few spots needing to be filled out with the hopes that Cowan can snatch one during training camp.

Between fans, pundits, and former players, there has been a wide variety of takes being made. However, there is one that should resonate with the fanbase, which comes from his former head coach, Dale Hunter.

Hunter has been a Knights mainstay since the beginning of the millennium as he's been some combination of franchise owner, president, and head coach since 2000. Having seen firsthand what Cowan is capable of, he believes the 20-year-old has every chance of becoming an NHL regular in 2025-26.

Cowan accumulated 63 goals and 165 points in 100 regular season games over the last 2 seasons. He rose to the occasion in the playoffs, where he added 23 goals and 73 points in 35 game en route to 2 OHL Championships as well as a Memorial Cup win earlier this year.

With creativity and offensive instincts required with Marner's departure, Cowan has a great opportunity to make his NHL debut this season. He will still need a solid training camp to convince the front office and coaching staff. However, Hunter's belief in him should be a good stepping stone to that final result.