Leafs prospect on fire at the midway point of the season and may be the steal of the draft

In the early-going here, Cowan, by all appearances, may be the steal of the 1st round. The 18-year-old forward has already matched his season-long total from last year with 53 points in just 29 games (he took 68 games to reach that mark last season), and not only is he firing on all cylinders right now, he also happens to be a special teams monster.

Cowan may be on the smaller side, at just 5'11 and 185 lbs, but what he lacks in size, he more than makes up for with his relentless motor, high hockey IQ, speed and tenacity. This kid is going to be a good one for the Leafs.

The Mount Brydges, Ontario native is currently riding an 11-game point streak for the London Knights in the OHL, but that's not the impressive part. What's impressive about that streak is the fact that he has racked up an astonishing 9 goals and 16 assists, totaling 25 points over that span. The Knights showed Cowan some love on their official team Twitter/X account on Friday.

The Maple Leafs got in on the fun as well, congratulating Cowan for being the OHL's points per game leader at 1.83 points per game.

Not only has Cowan far exceeded every expectation this season, he actually put himself on Team Canada's radar for the most recent World Junior Championship tournament. He made the team out of selection camp, which nearly nobody saw coming at the start of the season, and while the tournament ended up being a short one for Canada, it was a very valuable experience and a good motivator for Cowan, who will very likely push for a roster spot in Toronto out of training camp next season after having a very strong first NHL camp in 2023-24.