Gavin McKenna has been pegged as a future No. 1 pick since he was 14 years old. That came to fruition on Friday night when he was drafted first overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2026 NHL Draft.
After one season playing NCAA hockey at Penn State, McKenna became the highest-drafted player in team history, besting defenseman Jackson Smith who was taken No. 14 overall last year. The Whitehorse, Yukon, native totaled 15 goals and 36 assists throughout 35 games, finishing his lone season in Happy Valley as a top-10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award and claiming Big Ten Freshman of the Year and Big Ten scoring title accolades.
The forward also set the single-season program record for assists, including a high of seven during an 11-4 win over Ohio State in February. Throughout the year, head coach Guy Gadowsky and McKenna’s teammates continued to heap praise on his game-changing ability.
“I truly am going to miss him more as a person than as a player,” Gadowsky said in March. “He is such a great teammate and he’s so fun and positive to be around. And just so easy to be around.”
Despite a long list of program bests and individual accolades, Penn State stumbled down the stretch, finishing with a 21-14-2 overall record and a first-round exit in the NCAA Tournament. McKenna also ran into some off-the-ice trouble when he was charged with assault for allegedly punching a man in the face during a confrontation outside a downtown State College bar. (The case is still pending in Centre County Court of Common Pleas, though the most serious charge was withdrawn.)
But if there was any lingering doubt about his talents during the past year, those were qualmed by a stellar season with the Nittany Lions and a standout showing at the NHL combine.
Technically, McKenna can return to Penn State next season if he doesn’t sign a professional contract with Toronto, but for all intents and purposes, his college career has come to a close. McKenna may have only spent one winter donning the blue and white, but his legacy in State College will be felt for seasons to come.
For a team that has steadily built its blueprint on relentless pace and culture, boasting a No. 1 overall draft pick cements Happy Valley as a premier destination for elite, transcendent talent, proving that the path to the pinnacle of the hockey world can run through Pegula Ice Arena.
The Yukon native will trade the raucous atmosphere of the Pegula roar for the high-stakes pressure cooker of Toronto. Stepping away from the collegiate ranks, McKenna slides into a Maple Leafs organization that has long craved a dynamic, game-changing forward of his pedigree to push them over the postseason hump.
The expectations in one of hockey’s biggest markets will be immediate and immense, but if his historic, record-breaking season in Happy Valley proved anything, it’s that McKenna is perfectly comfortable under the brightest lights.
