Sam Alfano Commits To Arizona State
Former Erie Otters forward Sam Alfano has committed to Arizona State, it was announced late last week.
Alfano, a product of Hamilton, Ont., just finished his overage season in the OHL, scoring 41 goals and adding 43 assists for 84 points in 68 regular season games with the Otters. With Erie having made the playoffs, Alfano collected six goals and 15 points in nine games.
Drafted by the Peterborough Petes in the second round of the 2020 OHL Priority Selection, Alfano spent parts of four seasons in the OHL with the Petes and the Otters, putting up 99 goals and 103 assists for 202 points in 258 career regular season games. Prior to making the jump to the junior level, Alfano played his minor hockey for the Southern Tier Admirals.
With Alfano off to join the Sun Devils, they will be getting a player who will immediately be one of their better offensive drivers. Having showed his ability to score at will this year, Alfano has the size and strength necessary to make the transition to the NCAA look seamless.
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Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Leafs prospect Easton Cowan isn't about to replace Mitch Marner, but he has the DNA the team is looking for
Easton Cowan has accomplished pretty much everything a player can in junior hockey. The top Maple Leafs prospect went out a champion, named the most valuable player in the Memorial Cup after leading the London Knights over the Medicine Hat Tigers in Sunday's final . The question for Cowan isn't so much what's next, but what's the limit? 'If he continues to play with the same tenacity and puck-hounding ability, mixed with his puck skills and playmaking ability, he will be a productive NHL player,' said Frankie Corrado, the former Leafs defenceman who is now an analyst with TSN. 'Will he make the team next year? Depends on his camp. 'If he doesn't make the team out of camp, it should not be seen as a failure in any way, shape or form. He's a really good player with a hunger on the ice. It's only a matter of time until he is there and playing well.' Cowan is the epitome of a late-blooming junior player , a tenacious skater who went under the radar as a second-round pick in the OHL draft in 2021 and who was an eyebrow-raising first-round selection in the NHL draft two years later. The pick may well pay off. Cowan, from Mount Brydges, Ont., has twice represented Canada at the world junior championship. He was the first OHL player with a point in 60 straight games, though it's not an official record because it was set over two seasons. Former Leafs star Doug Gilmour holds the single-season record at 55 games, set with the Cornwall Royals in 1982-83. Nicknamed Cowboy, Cowan finished his junior career in London with 220 points (84 goals, 136 assists) in 175 games. More importantly for a team looking for someone who can rise to the occasion, he had 32 goals and 64 assists in 60 playoff games. He led the OHL playoffs in points in each of the last two post-seasons. He led the Memorial Cup tournament in points last year, and was the co-leader this year. In doing so, he tied Mitch Marner's Knights record of 15 points in Memorial Cup play. Cowan will come to Leafs camp at an intriguing time. There could well be an opening at right wing. Marner might leave as a free agent. The Leafs might also decide to cut bait with Nick Robertson. So there may be an opportunity for a prospect to push through. Having traded Cowan's friend, Fraser Minten, the Leafs aren't particularly deep with prospects at forward. Alex Steeves is generally believed to be their top minor-league prospect, but he could leave as an unrestricted free agent. Jacob Quillan, who scored 18 goals as a rookie with the Marlies, might get a long look. Cowan invigorated Leafs camp in 2023 when he was the last cut. He was only so-so at the 2024 camp, though the team said at the time his overall game was better even if the eye-popping plays were fewer. Those that have watched Cowan play, and watched other junior stars try to make the leap to the NHL, offer some caution. 'He's not ready for prime time next year,' TSN junior hockey analyst Craig Button said. 'Might even need some time in the AHL. But he'll grow and get better with time.' It would be unfair to cast Cowan as a possible replacement for Marner, if the star winger indeed leaves. And he's got a different set of strengths. Cowan plays a bit more like Nazem Kadri, his favourite Leaf as a kid. He's more of a physical player and can be tenacious in pursuing the puck. He's a playmaker as well, with a decent shot. 'He's a great competitor, and edgy,' Button said. 'If (Leafs GM) Brad (Treliving) wants to change the DNA of the Leafs, get players like Easton.' Cowan was five-foot-11, 170 pounds when the Leafs drafted him. He has gained an inch and 15 pounds. 'The thing that will serve him well is that even if he's not necessarily putting up points, he will bring something else to the table,' Corrado said. 'He has a B game that will serve him well.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Knights Take Care Of Business At Memorial Cup
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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Maple Leafs need to keep Easton Cowan and give him a legitimate shot
If Brad Treliving feels the urge to include Easton Cowan in a trade this summer, the Maple Leafs general manager should resist it. Strongly. The Leafs have to have some sort of hope for the future in regard to their prospects at forward, don't they? The cold reality is that Cowan, fresh off being named the most valuable player in the 2025 Memorial Cup after the London Knights beat the Medicine Hat Tigers in the final in Rimouski, Que., on Sunday night, stands alone in Toronto's prospect pool. The date of March 7 was pivotal for the Leafs as it related to its group of youngsters who could one day play in the National Hockey League. At the trade deadline, Treliving included centre Fraser Minten in a swap with the Boston Bruins to get defenceman Brandon Carlo and, when he acquired forward Scott Laughton from the Philadelphia Flyers, winger Nikita Grebenkin was part of the package that went to Philly. With Minten and Grebenkin gone, there's quite a drop from Cowan to the next forwards who the Leafs might look to one day to make an impact. But as for the group that includes Jacob Quillan, Miroslav Holinka, Nick Moldenhauer, Joe Miller and Roni Hirvonen, it might be a stretch to assume that any of them will one day become full-time Leafs. It's too early to say what Luke Haymes and Ryan Kirwan, both signed out of college this past year, could eventually provide. Cowan easily is the best of the bunch. What kind of NHL player the 20-year-old eventually develops into is to be determined, yet how can there not be a solid foundation of optimism for someone who has been dominant in the past two Ontario Hockey League seasons? At his end-of-season media availability last week, Treliving made the comment that 'champions have the ability to be calm and at their very best when it matters the most.' It was in reference to the Florida Panthers and Treliving acknowledged that the Leafs have to find improvement in that regard (no kidding). The gap between major junior hockey to the NHL undoubtedly is significant. Still, the fact that Cowan, with the Knights, fits Treliving's champion thoughts to a T has to be a source of encouragement for the organization as a whole. A year ago, Cowan was named the OHL playoffs MVP and then led the Memorial Cup in scoring, though London lost in the Cup final against the host Saginaw Spirit. This year, Cowan led the OHL in playoff scoring, leading London to a five-game win against the Oshawa Generals in the final, and led the Memorial Cup in scoring on the way to being named tournament MVP. With what Cowan has accomplished, there has been a comparison made to what Mitch Marner did with the Knights in the mid-2010s. Nine years ago, Marner was named the Memorial Cup MVP after London won the 2016 event in Red Deer, Alta., with an overtime victory against the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. That was after Marner led the OHL playoffs in scoring as London went 16-2 in the post-season, sweeping Niagara in the final. The difference — and it's not a small one — is that Marner did what he did a year ahead of Cowan. Marner turned 19 during the 2015 OHL playoffs. Cowan had his 20th birthday on May 20, three days before the Memorial Cup started. Marner's future isn't known, but that's only because no one can say with certainty where he will sign on July 1. What seems to be accepted, though we suppose that no door should be completely shut, is that it won't be with Toronto. As of now, the Leafs don't have a first-round pick in each of the next three years. It's true that to help fill the void that would result in Marner's departure, free agency alone won't get it done. Treliving is going to have to leave no stone unturned when investigating potential trades. And it's also true that, outside of Cowan and Matthew Knies, there aren't many young forwards (apologies to Nick Robertson) that other teams might insist to include in a trade. A look at Brad Treliving's work two years into his tenure as Maple Leafs GM London Knights redeem themselves with Memorial Cup crown Obviously, including Knies in a deal is not an option. Similar thinking should apply to Cowan. Once the Leafs get through training camp and the pre-season in September and October, they should have a firm idea of where Cowan slots into the lineup. He has the potential to one day be a difference-maker in the NHL. At the least, Cowan should get that opportunity with Toronto. Marner and Leafs captain Auston Matthews got some Selke Trophy love, following the pattern that has played out in the past several years. The Panthers' Aleksander Barkov was announced as the winner on Monday of the Selke, awarded to the best defensive forward in the NHL, finishing ahead of teammate Sam Reinhart and the Tampa Bay Lightning's Anthony Cirelli. Marner was seventh in voting by the Professional Hockey Writers' Association, marking his third top-10 finish in five years. Marner came closest to winning the Selke in 2022-23 when he was third in voting. Matthews was 14th in voting, marking the fourth time in four years he has finished in the top 15. In 2023-24, Matthews was third in voting for his best placing to date. tkoshan@ X: @koshtorontosun
