{"id":564228,"date":"2026-03-25T22:04:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T22:04:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/564228\/"},"modified":"2026-03-25T22:04:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T22:04:10","slug":"leafs-praise-spark-plug-cowans-character","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/564228\/","title":{"rendered":"Leafs praise ‘spark plug’ Cowan’s character"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Maple Leafs beat the Boston Bruins<\/a> 4-2 at TD Garden on Tuesday. Toronto will hold a media availability at Scotiabank Arena at 5:15 pm on Wednesday ahead of their game against the New York Rangers<\/a>. <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

After seeing Nikita Zadorov<\/a> hammer John Tavares<\/a> with an illegal hit in the second period of Tuesday\u2019s game, Easton Cowan<\/a> immediately skated over to confront the 6-foot-7, 255-pound Bruins defenceman. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou just kind of black out and go for it,\u201d the 6-foot, 190-pound Leafs rookie said. <\/p>\n

\u201cI really appreciated it,\u201d said Tavares before cracking a smile. \u201cI mean, he\u2019s feeling pretty tall right now, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cowan and Zadorov, who are both alumni of the London Knights, actually lived in the same billet house during their Ontario Hockey League days. <\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully my billet parents aren\u2019t too mad,\u201d Cowan said with a grin. <\/p>\n

Tavares made a point of thanking Cowan as the players left the ice following the second period. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe plays with a lot of emotion,\u201d the veteran centre said. \u201cYou can feel his excitement on a daily basis just getting up and getting to play and compete. I remember being in those shoes so it\u2019s invigorating and it\u2019s exciting. I think the world of him. Overall, he continues to grow and make his mark and prove that he belongs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cowan had vowed to learn from what happened earlier this month when Anaheim Ducks<\/a> defenceman Radko Gudas<\/a> injured Auston Matthews<\/a> with a knee-on-knee hit and the four other Leafs skaters on the ice, including Cowan, did not jump in immediately. <\/p>\n

Cowan fought Jackson LaCombe<\/a> in the third period of that game on March 12 after the Ducks defenceman hit Nick Robertson. The kid is a quick study. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think playing in London and being around the Hunter brothers [GM Mark and coach Dale] and learning about how to do things right, that\u2019s a big part of it,\u201d Leafs coach Craig Berube<\/a> said. \u201cHe\u2019s just got a lot of character.\u201d<\/p>\n

Easton Cowan has uncle Kyle on Leafs Mentors Trip<\/p>\n

What does he think his uncles’ reaction was to him going after Zadorov? <\/p>\n

“He would’ve loved for sure. He would’ve definitely loved that” @BarDown<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Mark Masters (@markhmasters) March 25, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Cowan did not register a point or shot in Boston, but the 20-year-old received the player-of-the-game belt following the 4-2 win. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a spark plug on our team,\u201d said goalie Anthony Stolarz<\/a>. \u201cSomebody that when he\u2019s going, everyone else cheers for. He\u2019s an easy guy to cheer for. We love him. He\u2019s a hard worker. Obviously with it being his first year in the league, for him to jump in and step up like that means a lot to the morale of the group.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Leafs are playing out the stretch in a lost season, but Cowan is providing the franchise and the fan base with reasons for optimism. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s extremely mature,\u201d said winger Matthew Knies<\/a>, who is the second-youngest player on the team at 23. \u201cSuper professional, takes care of himself, fun to be around. His young energy is important in this locker room. I think we have a little bit of an older team, so it\u2019s good to have his presence in the locker room.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zadorov received a major penalty for boarding and dropped the gloves with Dakota Joshua<\/a> shortly after exiting the box. <\/p>\n

\u201cGuys are getting in there and protecting their teammates, which is good,\u201d said Berube. \u201cGot to give Easton a lot of credit. Young kid, you know, going after a big man, and then Dak taking care of business. It\u2019s really good to see the team stuff like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

‘Black out and go for it’: Leafs love Cowan’s character after rookie confronts Zadorov Easton Cowan immediately confronted Nikita Zadorov after the 6-foot-7 Bruins defenceman levelled John Tavares with an illegal check. “You just kind of black out and go for it,” the 6-foot rookie said. Leafs teammates applauded Cowan’s character after the game.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

With the Leafs killing a penalty earlier in the second period, Knies deflected a pass to the point and beat Mason Lohrei<\/a> to the loose puck before shrugging off the 6-foot-5 defenceman and skating in on a breakaway.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just a battle for the puck and got the best of it and found some daylight and just had to bury it,\u201d Knies told TSN in an intermission interview. <\/p>\n

Knies made a nice move to beat Jeremy Swayman<\/a>, who is among the top goaltenders in the league this season. <\/p>\n

\u201cI have a few moves that tend to work so that was one of them,\u201d Knies said. \u201cPretty lucky it went in there.\u201d<\/p>\n

The goal was the first for Knies while shorthanded in the NHL and another reminder of the type of impact the 6-foot-3, 232-pound University of Minnesota product can make. <\/p>\n

\u201cEven though we\u2019re all very aware of how strong he is, it always just impresses you when he pulls it off,\u201d Tavares said. \u201cHis ability to just be so strong and just how physically mature he is. He\u2019s a beast, and a very unique player at his age to have that type of strength and then after that to have the soft hands and the poise and touch to score a beauty like that. So he\u2019s got a nice package as a player. We\u2019re obviously very lucky to have him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Knies drew a late tripping penalty on Casey Mittelstadt<\/a> before scoring an empty-net goal to secure the win. He\u2019s up to 59 points on the season, which is a new career high. <\/p>\n

\u201cKnies was really good all around,\u201d Berube said. \u201cJust that goal was a huge goal for us, just the power he presents and strength in skating. I thought he was really good all night, though, for us. Did a lot of good things.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt like I was moving,\u201d said Knies, who has managed a nagging knee injury this season. \u201cI was being physical. Yeah, getting to the net, getting shots on that. Yeah, I thought our whole line played well … Everyone kind of chipped in, so it was good to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Stolarz only faced 20 shots, but made several key stops when Boston led 1-0 and had a series of power play chances. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe made some fantastic saves,\u201d Berube said. \u201cThe East-West plays, you know, we were shorthanded quite a bit (five times). We took too many penalties, and I thought that he came up big a few times there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stolarz wore a dangling neck protector but showed no ill effects from the shot to the throat he took from William Nylander<\/a> in warm-up on Saturday, which forced him to miss a scheduled start in Ottawa. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been playing great,\u201d said Nylander before chuckling. \u201cThankfully he only missed one game after my shot .\u201d<\/p>\n

Stolarz is 2-1-2 with a .920 save percentage since the calendar flipped to March. <\/p>\n

\u201cSince the [Olympic] break, I\u2019ve been playing exceptionally well,\u201d Stolarz said. \u201cSo, I kind of just wanted to keep that rolling. Obviously, I looked out at the other end and one of the better goalies in the league in Swayman, so you know that you have to be on your game. He played fantastic too, you know, kind of go back and forth save for save. So, games like that for a goalie are pretty exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

‘He’s been playing great’: Nylander thankful Stolarz only missed one game after his shot Maple Leafs forward William Nylander joins Mark Masters to discuss what he liked about Easton Cowan’s fight against the Bruins, and how Anthony Stolarz played between the pipes. <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

The Leafs drew motivation from having some special guests in the building. The team is holding its annual Mentors Trip with each player inviting someone to join them in Boston and at the home game Wednesday night against the New York Rangers<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Stolarz brought his big brother Todd. <\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully he thought it was pretty good,\u201d Stolarz said. \u201cI was trying to get a goal for him, too.\u201d <\/p>\n

But Stolarz never got a look with the puck on his stick before Knies scored. <\/p>\n

\u201cSorry I couldn\u2019t get that for him,\u201d he said with a grin. \u201cBut, it\u2019s exciting to get the two points in front of all the mentors here. Obviously, they\u2019ve all meant a lot to us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tavares invited his father-in-law. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe was fired up,\u201d the 35-year-old beamed. <\/p>\n

Nylander fired a game-high six shots on net and potted the game-winning goal much to the delight of his sister. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s her first time in Boston so it\u2019s a great start,\u201d the Swede said. \u201cLucky charm.\u201d <\/p>\n

Gritty winger Michael Pezzetta<\/a> had his brother in attendance as he suited up for the third time with his hometown team<\/p>\n

\u201cSpecial to share this moment with him,\u201d the Toronto native said in an intermission interview. \u201cJust had a baby last week, so shout out Felix!\u201d<\/p>\n

Tuesday marked the first time the Leafs outshot an opponent in a win since Jan. 31 against the Vancouver Canucks<\/a>, who are in the basement of the league. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s been a long time since the Leafs felt this way after a win. <\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, hands down our best game in a long time,\u201d said Tavares, who recorded three points in a game for the first time since October. \u201cThe way we just kind of stuck with the game all night. There were some things I don\u2019t think always went our way but, you know, we didn\u2019t let it snowball and let that momentum kind of go against us. I think we just kept fighting, kept competing, and stayed with it and put them under a lot of pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stolarz hoped to score, but settled for a win as Leafs put on show for their mentors\u00a0 John Tavares says the Leafs played their “best game in a long time” Tuesday. The team was motivated to put on a show for special guests in attendance for the Mentors Trip. Anthony Stolarz was hoping to score a goal late in the game for his brother, but settled for a win.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Lines at Rangers skate on Wednesday: <\/p>\n

Perreault – Zibanejad – Lafreni\u00e8re<\/p>\n

Kartye – Miller – Sheary<\/p>\n

Cuylle – Trocheck – Sykora<\/p>\n

Raddysh – Brodzinski – Chmelar<\/p>\n

Gavrikov – Fox<\/p>\n

Schneider – Borgen<\/p>\n

Robertson – Iorio<\/p>\n

Shesterkin <\/p>\n

#NYR<\/a> lines and D pairs at morning skate: <\/p>\n

Perreault-Zibanejad-Lafreni\u00e8re
Kartye-Miller-Sheary
Cuylle-Trocheck-S\u00fdkora
Raddysh-Brodzinski-Chmela\u0159<\/p>\n

Gavrikov-Fox
Schneider-Borgen
Robertson-Iorio<\/p>\n

Fortescue took a rep with Robertson and there was some rotating on D.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mollie Walker (@MollieeWalkerr) March 25, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Leafs lines to start Tuesday\u2019s game:<\/p>\n

Cowan – Tavares – Nylander<\/p>\n

Knies – Domi – Robertson<\/p>\n

Maccelli – Groulx – Joshua<\/p>\n

Pezzetta – Quillan – Lorentz<\/p>\n

Rielly – Carlo<\/p>\n

McCabe – Ekman-Larsson<\/p>\n

Benoit – Stecher<\/p>\n

Stolarz <\/p>\n

Woll<\/p>\n

Related Stories