Brad Treliving feels that Easton Cowan is ready to play for Maple Leafs

Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving feels that forward Easton Cowan is ready for a chance at playing in the NHL.

While he was left off the opening night roster that the team submitted on Monday, Cowan was seen ahead of the first practice of the regular season, but ended up working on skills on another rink alongside Jacob Quillan. The consensus throughout camp was that Cowan had a solid chance to make the team, but things changed when Scott Laughton suffered a lower-body injury.

Despite that setback, Treliving told reporters on Tuesday that Cowan is a legitimate option for them this season.

“Today, he’s not on the roster. We’ll see what happens tomorrow,” he said. “Easton has had a really good camp. I think he’s right there, ready to play for us. If he’s going to be playing with us here, great, but if he’s not, I want him playing.”

Treliving later mentioned that it’s crucial not to look too deeply into the opening roster that was submitted and that they will see how things play out over the coming days.

He is the latest to declare that Cowan has what it takes to be a factor in the NHL this season after head coach Craig Berube said after Saturday’s preseason finale that he felt the forward was ready. While on the offset it appears that the Laughton injury has resulted in Cowan no longer being an option to start the year, the fact that both key members of the team agree that Cowan is ready suggests that it won’t be long before he is back in the mix.

Cowan himself expressed gratitude for making it to the end of training camp, even with all the uncertainty surrounding his status on the team to begin the campaign.

“It means a lot,” Cowan said to reporters on Monday. “I mean, you dream of it ever since you were a kid. To still be here, I’m very grateful for that, and not going to take any day for granted.”

While it remains to be seen at the time of filing that he will indeed be in the lineup for opening night, the Leafs can place Marshall Rifai on LTIR and then call up Cowan if they want him there. It very well could mean David Kampf comes back, but the fact that he went on waivers even after Laughton suffered his ailment while Cowan stuck around was quite telling.

Regardless of what transpires in the coming days, Cowan has nonetheless done enough in the eyes of Treliving to be an option for the Leafs at some point this season.