The Maple Leafs need to be thoughtful about how they handle Easton Cowan's development

Easton Cowan missed practice ahead of the Calder Cup Final and while it's just a maintenance day, Toronto has to be careful with their young star.

Easton Cowan was part of the reason the Marlies have made it to the Calder Cup Final, but he's also dealt with injury issues. He was absent at Toronto's practice ahead of their first game on Friday, and while there's no cause for alarm yet - they have to tread carefully with their young star.

He did deal with some injury issues in the Eastern Conference Finals and missed a couple of games in the meantime. It wasn't anything to be too concerned about, and he found himself in the lineup and back to his scoring ways.

Easton Cowan's absence at practice is questionable but the Marlies say it's just maintenance

Replacing Cowan on the second line was Reese Johnson, and there seems to be some concern however according to Marlies head coach John Gruden - fans don't need to fret.

Cowan was simply taking Wednesday off as a maintenance day, and with his previous injury in the playoffs already it is completely understandable why Gruden would want to sit him:

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But his absence at practice on Wednesday does make some wonder what exactly is going on, and if he managed to aggravate the injury or not; but either way the team needs to be cautious.

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We also saw the return of Jacob Quillan to practice. Quillan has also been dealing with an injury and has not played in the postseason since Game 3 against Wilkes-Barre on June 1st; he has 7 points in 16 playoff games so far this season.

Cowan has been great this postseason though, as he has 13 points in 17 games including a game-winner as well as 18 PIM. He's been as scrappy as he has been offensive and it's giving a lot of hope that he can bring this to the Maple Leafs next year.

The Maple Leafs need Easton Cowan to be healthy so maintenance is probably the best solution

If Cowan is dealing with an injury, then taking a day or two off is probably the best course of action. There's no reason to force him into a practice or get him active when he doesn't need to be, and there's a bigger picture to look at.

Toronto can't afford to have Cowan come into training camp without fresh legs, and for a rookie he's played a lot of hockey so far. Combine his AHL and NHL numbers and he's played 83 games - more than an official NHL season, so his body isn't exactly used to this type of grind.

Cowan is expected to be a huge part of the Maple Leafs offence next season and without that, they lose a significant part of their lineup; especially alongside Gavin McKenna.

If he's already dealing with injury issues in his rookie season, then how bad can it get if the rigours of a few NHL seasons catch up to him?

Keeping Cowan off the ice is the best case scenario, and it's not like the Marlies don't have some time before they play again. If Cowan makes an appearance in Game 1 on Friday then we have nothing to worry about.

But if his name isn't on the lineup card maybe we should start getting concerned.

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