Leafs Forward Easton Cowan Finishes With a Surprising Ranking in Top-100 Prospects List

With the 2025 NHL Draft behind us and the 2025-26 regular season upon us, it's high time for prospect rankings to make their appearances.

When it comes to prospects, The Athletic's Scott Wheeler is as reliable as they come, and he just recently dropped his top-100 prospects ranking, which has Easton Cowan ranked in a surprisingly low tier.

The Toronto Maple Leafs top prospect found himself ranked 48th in the NHL amongst his peers. Cowan is also the only Maple Leaf that cracks the list with defenseman Ben Danford outside of the top-100 for the time being.

As for Cowan, Wheeler did have some positive things to say like his standout skating abilities, high hockey IQ, and consistent 200-foot game, however the main reason he's so low is because he had him tabbed as an third liner before the year began.

In his defense, he mentioned that Cowan made massive strides from his initial assessment and he sees him going from an effective third-liner to an impactful top-9 forward, however that's as good as it gets from Wheeler's standpoint.

He finished off his assessment by saying that he has made consistent strides since being drafted as he's improved his game in all 3 zones as well as being able to play all three forward positions.

Fellow London Knights Sam Dickinson and Oliver Bonk made the list as well, ranked 6th and 45th, respectively. Also ahead of him are Bradley Nadeau from Carolina (46), Tom Willander from Vancouver (44), Cole Reschny from Calgary (41), and Cole Hutson from Washington (35).

Despite a season that saw Cowan register 138 points in 76 games that included the season, playoffs, and Memorial Cup, the former first round pick still has a lot to prove and he will look to silence his doubters as he takes aim towards earning a roster spot with the Maple Leafs on opening night.