The Maple Leafs were back on the ice at the Ford Performance Centre on Wednesday ahead of a pre-season game in Montreal against the Canadiens on Thursday.
Three takeaways as training camp rolls on:
RIDE ’EM COWBOY
Easton Cowan continues to make it difficult for the Leafs to cut him before the start of the regular season.
The 20-year-old remained on a line with centre Scott Laughton and Steve Lorentz at practice after the trio had a good night 24 hours earlier against the Ottawa Senators.
Teammates have made note that Cowan is a little thicker and, in the battle drills that coach Craig Berube runs at the end of each group’s on-ice session, Cowan isn’t getting knocked around.
“He’s a lot stronger than you think,” Berube said. “He’s such a competitor. He has energy.”
Admittedly, we go back and forth on where we think it would be best for Cowan to play in 2025-26.
A season of simmering in the American Hockey League with the Toronto Marlies remains on the table and, with the way Cowan thinks on the ice, we believe his development would nicely continue in the minors.
At the same time, that might not be required. If Cowan demonstrates enough defensive knowledge to play in the NHL — and that’s the key — then give him the opportunity. Don’t get too bogged down in the idea that Cowan should not be a fourth-line player. When he hits his stride in the NHL, he would move up on the Leafs depth chart.
“You play with anyone in an NHL lineup, they’re going to be good,” Cowan said. “But early on, I feel like I’ve had pretty good chemistry with Laughton and Lorentz. I liked our line’s game (on Tuesday). We created a lot and didn’t give up a lot.”
What has impressed Berube is Cowan’s willingness to listen.
“It’s my third training camp, so you learn a lot over the years, but yeah, I feel stronger and I feel good,” Cowan said. “I’ve learned to be a pro, taking care of my body before and after skates.
“Control what I can control and working hard and keep listening to (Berube). He knows the game. (Adhere) to his system and that’s how you get your chances.”
The Leafs, as of now, approximately are $1.9 million US under the cap and could fit in Cowan and his AAV of $873,500 on to the roster. A forward would have to be deleted to remain at the roster maximum of 23 players.
A fifth line right now is made up of David Kampf between Nick Robertson and Calle Jarnkrok.
With four pre-season games remaining, Cowan ranks ahead of all three. He’s the only one of the group that doesn’t need waivers to be sent to the minors. From the way he is playing, that should not be a factor.
MAX-IMUM RETURN
If you’re wondering, like we are, how Max Domi goes about forgetting a rocky season, he didn’t want to go there.
Domi had just 33 points in 74 games in 2024-25 and, though time off for an injury in November and December didn’t help, there was too much inconsistency in his play.
“Myself, personally?” Domi said. “I think as a whole, we had a great year. We learned a lot and, unfortunately, it ended the way that you didn’t really want it to.”
There’s a chance here for Domi to make some hay offensively, and while Berube’s initial thought was to have him on the top line with captain Auston Matthews and winger Matthew Knies, that’s not how Domi was used on Wednesday.
After attending the funeral of his grandfather on Tuesday, Domi — who is not quite ready for game action in dealing with a lower-body injury — skated with centre Nicolas Roy and Dakota Joshua.
“It’s similar to what the last couple years have been,” Domi said. “Trying to just get chemistry to everyone in camp. As the year gets going, you start to play with everyone. It’s no different this year.
“There’s open spots everywhere. Doesn’t matter where you play, you have to go out and do your best. Whatever I’m asked to do, I’ll be ready to play in that position.”
Said Berube: “He has had a lot of good seasons in the league, he has been a good player. It’s not like he’s going to overhaul his game. He has been a good playmaker.”
With the loss of Mitch Marner, any Leafs player with some offensive talent is going to have to take a step up. Domi certainly falls into that category, no matter which line he is on.
STANDOUT DANFORD
There’s no flash in Ben Danford’s game, but the 19-year-old defenceman is turning heads just the same.
There’s little question as to where Danford will start the season: It’s either another season as captain of the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League or a rookie year with the Leafs.
Considering the Leafs’ depth on the blue line, Oshawa makes the most sense. Having said that, with regular D-man Simon Benoit nursing an upper-body injury, Danford has been taking advantage of an increased opportunity.
When veterans are asked who has surprised them most in camp, Danford, the Leafs first-round pick in 2024, often is the answer.
“For how young he is, he has been really good, the steady calmness about him,” Joshua said. “That composure at a young age, he seems at ease out there at times. He reads the game well and just seems to be in the right spots as a young kid.”
One aspect of Danford’s secret? The work he has been doing with former NHL vet Jake Muzzin, now part of the Leafs development staff.
“Muzz has been great,” Danford said. “He just retired, he’s just coming out of the game, so he knows what it’s like. He has a lot of experience, won a Cup. I think it has definitely helped my learning curve.”
On the whole, the Leafs don’t have a deep stock of prospects who we expect will one day be contributing NHL players. Danford, though, has the potential to patrol the Toronto blue line for a long while.
That he has made an impact in this camp has to be a source of great encouragement for the organization.
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