Craig Berube on whether Easton Cowan is NHL-ready after preseason: "We have decisions to make, but he showed us enough to say he's ready"

"Hard-working game by our guys. We were in control of the game, and then we took the penalties. That is a pretty talented power play over there. It's our own fault for taking the penalties. We have to be more disciplined in those situations. We let them back in the game. Like everybody on the team, I thought the effort was really good tonight."

"He was really flying tonight, and he was physical. He was aggressive, shot the puck, and scored. He did a lot of good things. He was really good tonight. He did a lot of good things. He maybe tried to do too much at times, but it is not from a lack of effort. He is trying to do things that he is good at."

"Yeah, I think he is. We have decisions to make, but I think he showed us enough (to say) that he is ready. He has a motor on him. He impresses me with his motor. It is constant work, and he has a high IQ. I liked him a lot. It's similar. I think he worked quite a bit this summer on some areas he needed to improve on. I have seen that improvement."

Maple Leafs played a hard-working preseason finale but lost 6-5 in overtime after taking penalties that allowed Detroit's talented power play to rally. Nick Robertson skated with pace, played physically, shot the puck and scored while showing strong play. Easton Cowan displayed effort, skill and a high motor, sometimes trying to do too much but showing NHL readiness across five preseason games. Dennis Hildeby showed offseason improvement and solid goaltending in camp. Cam Reimer made some saves in his first game after a long layoff but was placed in tough situations by penalties. Goal scorers included Robertson, Logan Shaw, Cedric Pare, Michael Pezzetta and Alex Nylander.

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