There’s a different kind of tension around the Toronto Maple Leafs as training camp approaches. This time, the intrigue isn’t centered on who the team still needs to add. It’s about what might already be in the building.
Gavin McKenna and Easton Cowan are two young forwards who could reshape the way Toronto looks in the top six, while Bo Groulx has also pushed his way into the conversation after a strong run with the American Hockey League’s Toronto Marlies. None of the three is locked into a major role, and that uncertainty is exactly what makes camp worth watching.
McKenna still has to prove he’s ready for the NHL. Cowan needs to build on his rookie season.
Groulx has only a small NHL sample on his résumé. But those unknowns are part of the appeal.
The Maple Leafs have internal competition for jobs, and that can matter just as much as bringing in another veteran and handing him a spot.
What makes McKenna and Cowan especially interesting is that they don’t necessarily solve the same problem. Toronto could end up with two young forwards who offer very different options for the coaching staff.
McKenna is the clear offensive swing. If he’s ready to jump into the NHL right away, he could fit beside Auston Matthews and give the top line a dynamic playmaking presence.
Cowan brings a different profile. His ceiling may not be as high as McKenna’s, but his compete level, puck retrieval and playmaking ability could make him a natural fit next to John Tavares.
That gives Toronto something useful: flexibility. The Maple Leafs don’t have to frame this as a straight-up battle between the two.
They can look at which player fits which line. If McKenna is ready, Matthews and McKenna could become one of the more intriguing offensive pairings on the roster.
If Cowan keeps developing, he could give Tavares a younger, faster winger who can do some of the heavy lifting and help create space.
That’s the part to keep an eye on when camp opens. McKenna could raise the ceiling of the top six.
Cowan could make one of those lines harder to play against. Toronto doesn’t need them to do the exact same job.
In fact, the best outcome might be that they grow into different kinds of forwards.
Groulx has also made himself worth a closer look. In the comments section of a recent The Hockey Writers post, Reader OldDuffer pointed to the possibility that Groulx could follow a path similar to Bobby McMann’s.
It’s not a perfect comparison, but it makes sense. Both are bigger forwards who had to earn their way through the AHL before getting a real NHL opportunity.
McMann eventually turned that chance into a useful middle-six role. Groulx is now trying to do something similar.
He had a strong season with the Marlies, scoring 27 goals and 50 points in 54 games, and he carried that momentum into his NHL opportunity with the Maple Leafs. Those few games aren’t enough to label him a regular, but they were enough to keep the conversation alive.
The important thing is that Groulx didn’t just stumble into a look. He put together a season that forced the organization to pay attention.
That’s why he’s part of this camp picture now. He may not have a guaranteed path, but he has earned a serious look.
Taken together, the McKenna, Cowan and Groulx storylines point to the same larger idea: Toronto doesn’t need every young player to become a star. It needs some of them to become useful NHL pieces who can fill defined roles.
McKenna could bring creativity. Cowan could add pace and compete in the middle six.
Groulx could offer size, energy and versatility lower in the lineup. That kind of internal growth can deepen a roster without another major spending spree.
So the biggest question at camp may not be whether these players can make the team. It’s what they can give the Maple Leafs if they do.
McKenna could change the look of the top line, Cowan could give Tavares a different winger, and Groulx has a chance to show his Marlies production wasn’t just a hot streak. If even one of them takes a real step, Toronto is better off.
If two or three do, the lineup decisions get a lot more interesting.
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On the Oilers side, the conversation is about how much they would have to pay to land a player they could build around for years, especially in a market where premium winger trades have not come cheaply. The framework being discussed includes multiple pieces and a protected 2028 first-round pick, which shows the kind of price tag these kinds of swings can carry even before anyone decides whether the fit is worth it. [Read more 🡒]