Easton Cowan has lost his mojo a little bit.
The 20-year-old was a healthy scratch for the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night against the Vancouver Canucks, with William Nylander returning to the lineup for the first time since Jan. 15.
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It was the 12th time this season that Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube has benched Cowan.
“(Cowan) just needs a little reset here,” Toronto’s coach said Saturday afternoon, ahead of Toronto’s matchup against Vancouver.
The rookie’s game has dipped since having five points in eight games, from Jan. 6 to 19. In his last five games since Jan. 21, Cowan has registered only one assist and is sporting a minus-four rating.
“To me, I think he’s lost a little bit of his swagger. That’s a big part of his game, and I’m not seeing that right now from his game,” Berube continued.
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“He may be worried about making mistakes and just little things like that that probably are affecting him and getting in the way of him being successful right now.”
It’s not just the points and plus-minus that you notice about Cowan, though.
The young forward hasn’t stood out much compared to the first half of the year, when he scored seven goals, with the last coming on Jan. 12 in a huge overtime win against the Colorado Avalanche.
At the time, he was showing glimpses of being the “big time” player, like he was with the OHL’s London Knights. But his game has tapered off, likely in part due to the difficult schedule and Toronto’s overall play.
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Entering Saturday’s game against the Canucks, the Maple Leafs had lost six consecutive games. (The last time Cowan was a healthy scratch was Dec. 27 against the Ottawa Senators.) Cowan has 17 points in 43 games this season.
“I think a young player like that, when a team is not at its best and winning and playing good hockey, it’s going to affect those guys a little more,” said Berube.
Whenever Cowan returns to the lineup, he should play more than 10 minutes per game.
The forward has gotten time on every line for Toronto throughout his first season in the NHL, which is a positive. However, in the same breath, Cowan hasn’t played more than 13 minutes since Jan. 10 against the Canucks — 11 games ago.
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If Toronto ends up becoming a seller at the trade deadline — which it sounds like they will be — Cowan should take on a larger role whenever Toronto ships out its players.
Playing in the NHL, of course, is an incredible experience for a young forward like him. He needs to play more than the ice time he’s gotten recently, though.
And maybe Cowan gets a brief stint with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies during the Olympic break. But whenever he’s playing at the NHL level, he should be playing more than bottom-six minutes.
It’s crucial for his development.
