Leafs Captain Auston Matthews and Veteran Max Domi Prank Rookie Forward Easton Cowan
Photo credit: Dan Hamilton - Imagn Images
After making his debut, Easton Cowan was formally welcomed to the NHL ranks by Auston Matthews and Max Domi with a hilarious prank at their team dinner.
After having been drafted in the first round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, Easton Cowan has finally made it to the NHL and hasn't looked out of place to start the season with the Toronto Maple Leafs. In fact, he has been thriving.
Cowan was scratched for the first two games of the season, but was given an opportunity after Steven Lorentz went down with an injury. With the club needing an offensive spark, head coach Craig Berube placed him on the top line with Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies, and they clicked instantly.
The rookie notched his first career NHL point in Tuesday's 7-4 win over Nashville and showcased a lot of poise, comfortability, and chemistry with his running mates.
A part of the comfortability comes in the form of his teammates pulling a prank on the rookie at their most recent team dinner to help him feel like a part of the everyday NHL group. A typical form of hazing in the sports world, Cowan was handed a very expensive - yet fake - bill at the end of the meal, which he thought he had to pay for.
We were out for dinner, and I was sitting with the younger guys on the team, I'd say, and the waiter came over and handed me a bill. I thought I was going to have to pay for it, but it was just (Max Domi and Auston Matthews) playing a prank on me. So, it was definitely nice, finding out you didn't have to pay for that, but just little jokes like that, that are funny and go a long way, and it's just cool they can joke around, and you got to be able to take it.
That might have been the only time that Cowan felt nervous and like a fish out of water, but fortunately, Knies was there and was able to help his linemate by pointing out it was a fake bill.
Pretty nervous, but (Matthew Knies) helped me out, looked at the bill, made sure it was fake. So yeah, definitely nervous for sure though.
Cowan will look to continue building chemistry on and off the ice and on it with his teammates as the Leafs continue their 5-game home-stand later tonight when they host the New York Rangers.
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