Easton Cowan already owns 2 game-winning goals for the Maple Leafs. Monday afternoon, his name landed in a trade pitch for Simon Edvinsson.
Nick Alberga floated the idea on Daily Faceoff, arguing Toronto needs a difference-maker on the blue line. The premise is tough to dispute.
Through 10 games, not a single Leafs defenceman has found the net. That includes Darren Raddysh and his $8,500,000 cap hit.
Morgan Rielly sits at a -6 rating. Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Jake McCabe have yet to register a point between them.
And the team numbers tell the same story from a different angle. Toronto is 4-4-2 and has surrendered 33 goals, one more than it has scored.
Enter Edvinsson, a 6-foot-6 left shot the Red Wings drafted 6th overall in 2021.
He put up 31 points across 78 games in 2024-25. Last season, the big Swede finished at +12 while piling up 75 penalty minutes.
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Toronto's goalless blue line forces a hard call on a 21-year-old
Now the cost. Cowan is 21 and carries a $900,000 cap hit, the kind of cheap deal contending teams guard like house keys.
He has 7 points through 10 games, and the timing of his goals matters more than the total.
Monday night was quieter. The forward logged 15:19 in a 3-1 win over San Jose and stayed off the scoresheet.
Then there's the injury picture. John Tavares is on injured reserve with a lower-body issue and isn't expected back until at least Nov. 27.
So who absorbs that offence if Toronto ships out another forward? Gavin McKenna has 6 points at 18, but leaning harder on a teenager is its own gamble.
Here's my take. If Detroit would actually take Cowan straight up for a defenceman with 175 career NHL games, the Leafs should make the call before lunch.
Trading a forward when your blue line can't score is like selling your second car to fix a leaking roof. It stings, but the rain doesn't care how you feel about it.
The other end of the phone matters too. Shawn Horcoff's Red Wings sit at 3-3-2 under Todd McLellan, and top-10 picks rarely move this early in a season.
Toronto heads to Columbus tonight still waiting on its first goal from the back end. How long management lets that drought run before picking up the phone is anyone's guess.
Should the Maple Leafs trade Easton Cowan to land Simon Edvinsson?
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