This Maple Leafs youngster is earning serious praise from a respected voice

Easton Cowan is getting a loud vote of confidence from Maple Leafs media on Monday, and the number attached to it is bold.

TheLeafsNation posted a clip featuring insider Nick, and he did not hedge for a second on where Cowan's heading.

"I have Easton Cowan scoring 25-plus goals this coming season," Nick said, flat out, no qualifiers attached.

Cowan closed last season with 29 points in 66 games, 11 goals and 18 assists, a rookie audition that flashed more promise than production.

But his final 10 games looked different. Seven points, two goals and five assists, the kind of finish that gets people talking about next season.

Nick leans into the mic and drops the number without blinking, like a guy who already watched the tape everyone else hasn't seen yet.

Doubling a goal total in one year isn't a small jump. It's asking a kid with a learner's permit to run the Indy 500.

Jim Hiller inherits a Maple Leafs team that needs answers fast

Toronto hired Jim Hiller as head coach on June 17, and he's walking into a roster that finished dead last in its own division standing among the worst in the league.

The Maple Leafs went 32-36-14 last season, closing on a seven-game losing streak with a minus-46 goal differential.

That's the kind of finish that opens up ice time. A new coach with no attachment to last year's lineup often means opportunity for a young forward trying to prove he belongs.

Cowan is only 21, wearing No. 53, and still playing on an entry-level deal worth $873,500. If Hiller wants to lean on youth, Cowan is a name that fits.

Twenty-five goals would nearly double his previous best. It's not impossible, but it's a swing, and Bob's not buying it outright without seeing it in games that count.

Training camp will tell the real story. Whether Cowan gets top-six minutes or gets buried on the fourth line depends entirely on what Hiller decides once the puck actually drops.