Easton (Cowboy) Cowan’s family and friends in London are saddling up for an equidistant ride in opposite directions in case he makes his National Hockey League debut this weekend.

Maybe it’s Saturday night in Detroit or Monday back in Toronto against the same Red Wings as they await word on pointing the posse east or west.

“If I find out I’m in, I’ll have about 20 or 30 people there,” Cowan said after practice on Friday, adding a quip that “(Detroit) might be better with all the traffic.”

Coach Craig Berube is not tipping his hand as Cowan spent a second workout alternating with Calle Jarnkrok on the fourth line’s right side with centre Nicolas Roy and Steven Lorentz.

The logical path for Cowan is to go Monday, an emotion-fueled home game and the start of a back-to-back where he could then rest against the visiting Nashville Predators on Tuesday and be assessed.

Berube likely isn’t keen on breaking up his opening-night winning roster when Jarnkrok scored in the 5-2 win over Montreal, another factor in letting Cowan wait for Monday.

“He’s close,” is all Berube would say. “He has a great attitude, works hard and had a good practice today, but those are decisions we have to make. We’ll see what happens tomorrow.

“The team is first. I love Cowan — we all  do — and he’ll be a good Leaf, but we have to make decisions and they don’t always please everybody.”

Cowan, the club’s first-round pick two years ago, played in a team-high five exhibition games and after being left off the 23-man roster earlier this week for salary cap reasons, was activated a couple of days later.

He’d have noted that centre Fraser Minten, his good friend and fellow Leafs junior prospect who was traded to Boston last spring, had the 4-3 overtime winner for the Bruins on Thursday.

“It’s out of my control,” Cowan said. “That’s why I’m working hard every day, having good scratch skates and getting better. Practising with NHL guys is only going to get you better, picking everyone’s brain.

“So, as soon as I get in, I’ll be ready.”

We look at five notable debuts for Leafs in franchise history.

Auston Matthews, Oct. 12, 2016

The No. 1 overall pick in the draft blasted his way into the NHL record book with four goals in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators. No player in league history notched that in a first outing and the humble 19-year-old made sure to temper all the excitement by reminding the media he’d made a defensive gaffe in overtime as well.

Matthews, now the team captain, could break Mats Sundin’s franchise goal record of 420 early this season.

Borje Salming, Oct. 10, 1973

Salming and countryman Inge Hammarstrom had created a stir after arriving from Sweden. In the defenceman’s first appearance, the fine athletic specimen immediately won over the crowd with his smooth skating, heralding offensive and defensive acumen for two decades.

Named one of the three stars after his assist in the 7-4 win over Buffalo, Salming had no idea what to do for the Canadian post-game ritual and had to be pushed back out on the ice to give a wave. With the Swedish ambassador to Canada in attendance, Salming and Hammarstrom had launched what became a European invasion of the NHL.

George Armstrong, Dec. 3, 1949

‘The Chief’ didn’t get a point, but the significant part of this 2-0 win over the visiting Rangers was what it led to.

He’d opened the door to a Hall of Fame career that would reach 1,188 games, all with Toronto, and 110 playoff appearances, both club records, while captaining four Stanley Cup winners in the 1960s.

But Armstrong had to have his mother sign his first pro contract for him as he was underage.

Ed Belfour, Oct. 10, 2002

Booed at home a few days earlier for indifferent pre-season play (the grouchy Belfour was a tough sell for fans who’d loved the departed Curtis Joseph), Eddie the Eagle did what no other Toronto netminder had managed in his crease unveiling.

Belfour authored a 33-save, 6-0 shutout of the Pittsburgh Penguins at The Igloo, the first of his 93 regular season wins, 10th most in team history.

Joe Ironstone, March 3, 1927

When John Ross Roach was hospitalized with an attack of gallstones, Leafs manager Conn Smythe had to sign Ironstone, local stopper for the Toronto Ravinas of the Canadian Professional Hockey League.

Ironstone (is there a better name for a goalie?) made 44 saves in a 0-0 tie against Boston that included a 10-minute overtime duel with Hal Winkle of the B’s.

But when Joe asked for more money, Smythe gave him the cold shoulder. Other than a brief appearance with the New York Americans two years earlier, Ironstone never played in the NHL again.

Lhornby@postmedia.com

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