Toronto Maple Leafs' Easton Cowan admits struggles during pre-season due to pressure of the market

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Tom Banks
September 26, 2024 (3:12 PM)

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Easton Cowan, top prospect of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Photo credit: The Leafs Nation

The Toronto market isn't an easy one to deal with, and very early in his career, top prospect Easton Cowan admits he's struggling with the pressure at times.

Toronto Maple Leafs fans have been excited about the talent of Easton Cowan since he was drafted in the first-round of the 2023 NHL Draft, and while he's no doubt been excited, the pressure of playing in Toronto isn't easy. Cowan would go on to dominate the OHL with the London Knights a season ago, and ahead of his first battle with the Montreal Canadiens, he's addressed the excitement of playing with two former Knights in Mitch Marner and Max Domi.

"That'll be pretty exciting. I guess whoever you play with out there, they've mostly all played in the NHL, so they know what they're doing out there," Cowan said. "Any line may will be a good line mate."

However, it's not all been good this off-season for Cowan, as he has struggled through two pre-season games thus far, with Head Coach Craig Berube even admitting it's clear that Cowan is putting plenty of pressure on himself.

"We want to see him. I want to see him in the lineup tonight, playing with some good players. I think he's probably put a lot of pressure on himself here coming into camp, and he needs to just go out and play his game tonight."

However, he has impressed in training camp, and at 19-years of age, there's still plenty for him to work on, with Cowan looking to continue building on the positives he's shown thus far.

"Yeah, it's been hard. I've been trying to justify that these first couple games and it got to me a bit. So I'm just looking to build off my first couple games here, and like I said, just play a bit more free and balance those two things."

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Ultimately, Cowan is one of the most talented prospects in the NHL, and with the Maple Leafs loaded forward group, he'll have plenty of players to learn from, but for now, he looks to ease the pressure on himself and find his game at the next level.

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SEPTEMBRE 26 \| 130 ANSWERS Toronto Maple Leafs' Easton Cowan admits struggles during pre-season due to pressure of the market Will Easton Cowan make his NHL debut in 2024/25?
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