Leafs practice notes: Jacob Quillan bumped to third line to form kid unit with Easton Cowan, Nick Robertson
While Nick Robertson has earned more of head coach Craig Berube’s trust over the past two years, regular ice time has been hard to come by for top prospect Easton Cowan, and especially Toronto Marlies callup Jacob Quillan. Cowan’s ice time over the past three games has perhaps served as an indicator that more minutes are on the way, having played 15:18, 16:48, and 17:03 in his last three games, respectively. Quillan, however, has yet to eclipse the ten-minute mark, so it will be interesting to monitor his ice time and the combined ice time of that new-look third line.
With the Maple Leafs having traded Nicolas Roy, Bobby McMann, and Scott Laughton at the deadline, the Maple Leafs would be wise to use the remainder of a total lost season to get a good look at their young players. Getting Quillan onto the third line with the two youngest players on the team is a good start, but there are still Marlies such as William Villeneuve, Luke Haymes, and potentially someone like Bo Groulx who could use the last stretch of the season as a 2026-27 audition, of sorts.
Outside of that, there are no real changes to the lineup. Matias Maccelli remains on the second line with John Tavares and William Nylander after what’s been his hottest stretch of the season. Maccelli has been one of if not the lone bright spot on this Leafs team over the past few games, with goals in each of his last three and eight points in his last nine games, and a strong finish to the season could entice the Leafs to consider re-signing him after the season.
The Leafs will face the Canadiens on Tuesday night before returning home to face the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday, followed by a road back-to-back with the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday and the Minnesota Wild on Sunday.