Meet Gavin McKenna: The player from Whitehorse, Yukon who is about to change everything for the Maple Leafs
Photo credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
The first time I heard the name Gavin McKenna was back in 2021. Then 13-years-old, McKenna was beginning to generate buzz out in Western Canada.
McKenna, then an unknown in greater hockey circles, would be promoted to the U18 league of the CSSHL, the top regional prep hockey league for youth players. He'd be playing against players nearly five years older at most, and here is where he'd become known.
That level of competition never phased the youngster, who dominated the league as if surrounded by peers, scoring 23 goals and 65 points in just 35 games for the RINK Academy in Kelowna. Having turned 14, McKenna had led the entire U18 in points.
Born in Whitehorse, Yukon, the province's capital and largest city, its population of just over 28,000 has produced just one NHLer of note in Dylan Cozens.
Of no surprise, McKenna, who had begun to draw serious hype by this point in his young career, was granted special status to play in the WHL a year early. And the hype would become unstoppable in an instant.
Gavin McKenna's WHL time helped blossom a superstar on a dominant Medicine Hat Tigers team
The WHL drafts player a year earlier than the OHL and QMJHL, so McKenna, having been draft eligible as an '07 birthday, was not given exceptional status as some erroneously report, but that he was granted the ability to play games earlier.
It didn't take long for the hockey world to know Gavin McKenna, in fact, it'd take just a game. McKenna started off his WHL career with a four assist game in his debut with the Medicine Hat Tigers.
McKenna's hype began to skyrocket as soon as he stepped onto CHL ice. Furthering his reputation was the revelation that McKenna is a cousin of what at the time was seen as the next 'generational prospect' in Connor Bedard.
Suddenly McKenna had next.
Another slight misreporting states that McKenna and Bedard are second cousins, the two being more distant than that, as McKenna would later confirm is the case.
The two hockey prodigies had actually little connection with one another, their relationship however beginning to blossom with McKenna's emergence, the young Bedard himself in the WHL becoming a mentor.
In 133 career WHL games, McKenna had a whopping 79 goals, 165 assists, & 244 points. Only Washington Capitals prospect Andrew Cristall had more points in McKenna's last two WHL season, while being two and a half years older than McKenna.
McKenna's regular season tallies had been nothing short of elite, fueling even greater the comparisons to cousin Bedard, but it was McKenna's postseason success that made the upside unstoppable.
The outlook for Medicine Hat in 2024-25 was uncertain. Posessing one of the league's top prospects in 2024 fourth pick Cayden Lindstrom, they would be without the star center for the season with a serious back injury.
Lindstrom and McKenna's often linemate Andrew Basha would go down after just 23 games, furthering doubts over the competitiveness of the Tigers, despite their talented youngster.
McKenna, however, proved the fact that he can very well be a one man show. Second in points with 129, three back of Cristall, the postseason was McKenna's moment to shine.
Gavin McKenna proves himself as a potential generational talent following exceptional D-1 season
McKenna had two short playoff runs in the past with Medicine Hat, but this time would go the distance with the Tigers. Losing just one game of their playoff run, McKenna would face off against Cristall and the Spokane Chiefs.
However, Cristall and the Chiefs would have no answer to Medicine Hat, losing in five games, punching themselves a ticket to the Memorial Cup, and against the CHL's best.
McKenna was named the WHL and CHL's player of the year, joining Sidney Crosby, John Tavares, and Alexis Lafreniere as those to be named the CHL's top player as an underager - all eventually going first overall.
Up against two stacked teams in OHL winning London Knights and QMJHL champion Moncton Wildcats, along with hosts Rimouski, McKenna would face his toughest battle for domination yet.
Medicine Hat would go undefeated in the round robin, punching an automatic berth to the finals, with London matching up with the Tigers after defeating Moncton 5-2.
Leafs prospect Easton Cowan and Flyers forward Denver Barkey would lead the way for London early, with a late goal by McKenna not able to claim victory for Medicine Hat, the London Knights winning the Memorial Cup, Easton Cowan named tournament MVP.
Gavin McKenna takes his talent to college after dominating junior hockey, creating a draft wildcard
Gavin McKenna's ascent to youth hockey superstardom came with monumental changes to the structure of the junior system with the bombshell agreement that allowed for CHLers to play NCAA hockey.
McKenna, who had won it all for Medicine Hat in the WHL, but had the Memorial Cup elude him, remained mum on his future, with next season looking that it could go any way one or the other.
Eventually, McKenna made the decision to take his game to the next level. McKenna would make the jump to college hockey, joining Penn State University.
Despite McKenna being viewed as a potential generational question, his slimmer size at 6'0 and 165 lbs did open some questions about how the 17-year-old would do against older, stronger competition.
Having dominated older players all his life, the transition would theoretically be no sweat off McKenna's back, but the physical differences had never been as daunting as this.
Initially, the fears over McKenna's leap to college were in some ways founded as McKenna did indeed show limitations in his physical games early in his season for Penn State.
The Nittany Lions, not among the titans of college hockey, but a well respected program, would go up against some competitive opponents.
McKenna's first real test came in November with games against Michigan, Minnesota, & Michigan State, the latter having been runners-up for McKenna's commitment.
In those six games, McKenna had just a goal and five points. For any player, it would be respectable. For a franchise project at just a PPG pace, suddenly the unbeatable McKenna had been opened for criticism.
Players of McKenna's caliber are almost always subject to nitpicking in their game, perhaps to a far too intense degree, but dissecting McKenna's game began to open up concerns that he may not be the next Connor Bedard, so what was he?
International hockey would quiet, but not silence critics of McKenna as he came second in points with 14 in seven games, a feat overshadowed by Canada's semifinals loss to Czechia, a repeat of a result the year prior, the Canadians finishing with bronze.
Further questions of McKenna came off the ice as on February 2nd, as he would be charged with felony assault following a bar fight between McKenna and another patron.
A felony charge, which could have seen McKenna do prison time, was dropped, although three lesser charges remained. Suddenly, McKenna had hockey's eyes on him for all the wrong reasons.
Finally, McKenna's breakthrough would come in a game on Feb. 20th against Ohio State, breaking out for seven assists and eight points in an 11-4 win.
It was a much needed breakout for McKenna, who finished his season with 15 goals and 51 points in 36 games for Penn State, only Adam Fantilli and Macklin Celebrini having better NCAA seasons by a draft eligible.
The rise of Gavin McKenna has almost always coincided with the similar hype in Europe for fellow 2026 NHL Draft prospect Ivar Stenberg.
Ranked as the top prospect by NHL Central Scouting for European skaters, Stenberg had been a highly touted forward who had less notoriety, a factor being playing in Europe rather than North America, but like McKenna viewed as one of 2026's best for a number of years.
The younger brother of St. Louis Blues prospect Otto, the younger Stenberg was already becoming known by the time the elder was drafted in 2023.
Gavin McKenna has overcome every challenge put before him, consistently able to play above his grade, and as he enters the draft being touted as great since before junior hockey, McKenna has had all the time to prepare for the highest level.
With the Toronto Maple Leafs now holding the first overall pick, the boy from Whitehorse could soon find himself the face of hockey's biggest market.
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