Maple Leafs draft Gavin McKenna first overall in NHL draft

McKenna is a supremely gifted left winger who has drawn comparisons to Patrick Kane

Published Jun 26, 2026  •  Last updated 9 minutes ago  •  4 minute read

From left, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, Gavin McKenna, and Justin Bieber are on stage after McKenna was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs with the first overall pick during day one of the 2026 NHL Draft on June 26, 2026 in Buffalo, N.Y Photo by Bruce Bennett /Getty Images

See more Toronto Sun on Google — save as a Preferred Source 

Article content

BUFFALO — Gavin McKenna is a Toronto Maple Leaf.

Article content

Article content

For a majority of Leafs Nation, your pre-draft wish has come true.

Weeks of speculation came to an end on Friday night at the KeyBank Center when the Leafs, for the third time in franchise history, made the first pick in the National Hockey League draft.

It’s McKenna, a supremely gifted left winger who has drawn comparisons to Patrick Kane, among others, for his ability to put the puck in the net and distribute it to others with above-average creativity and intelligence.

McKenna was announced by pop star Justin Bieber, days after it was announced that McKenna’s walkout song upon being drafted would be Bieber’s Yukon.

Expect McKenna to be slotted on captain Auston Matthews’ left wing when training camp starts in September. McKenna, who turns 19 in December, is ready for that kind of opportunity right away.

Matthews welcomed McKenna to Toronto via video.

Gavin McKenna attends the 2026 NHL Draft Top Prospects Media Availability on June 25, 2026 in Buffalo, N.Y. Photo by Bruce Bennett /Getty Images

McKenna follows Wendel Clark, chosen first in 1985, and Matthews, taken first here in 2016, in the small group of players that Toronto has chosen with the top pick.

Article content

Article content

“Toronto is such a big fan base and passionate fan base, so if I do get drafted there, I’d be pretty pumped,” McKenna said during a media availability on Thursday. “This (being drafted first overall) is something I’ve dreamed of since I was a kid.”

Clark went on to become one of the most popular Leafs in team history. Matthews already has set the franchise record for goals. Both were named captain and in their own ways have become part of Leafs lore.

There will be plenty of room for McKenna to put his stamp on the organization.

On Thursday, Maple Leafs general manager John Chayka said that the staff had made a “unanimous” decision on the player the club would take first. The only other true option for Toronto at No. 1 was Swedish left winger Ivar Stenberg, who was chosen second overall by the San Jose Sharks.

“There’s a lot of conviction,” Chayka said. “Through the process, we wanted to make sure that we thought about it in all the different ways possible. We got everyone’s perspective, everyone’s input, looked at different players’ strengths and weaknesses, evaluated the strengths, evaluated the weaknesses, video, data, research and development, medical, just to make sure we’re not missing anything.

Article content

“But think at the end of the day it was straightforward.”

What the 5-foot-11, 170-pound McKenna has done on the ice — dominating the Western Hockey League with the Medicine Hat Tigers for two seasons before recording an impressive 51 points in 35 games in 2025-26 at Penn State — has been well-documented.

McKenna’s play has spoken for itself, though some of Chayka’s conviction came in a visit to McKenna in May at the family home in Whitehorse, Yukon.

Once the Leafs won the draft lottery on the night of May 5, preparation shifted into high gear.

“Really nice young man, really quality family, spent some quality time with them, got to know him,” Chayka said at the scouting combine earlier this month. “He’s a small-town kid. It’s a remote area of the world, very peaceful, but beautiful.

“Within that, I think there’s some real resolve around who he is and what his career means to him and his family. I find it impressive.”

During a media availability on Thursday, McKenna spoke about that visit. It included taking Chayka for a ride on an off-road vehicle.

Article content

“I always carry that Yukon pride with me,” McKenna said. “I got to show (Chayka) a little bit of it. I hope he had a good time. He was smiling when I took him up on the mountain. I had fun, and I hope he did.”

What has it been about McKenna in the past several seasons that has help set him apart from the rest of the 2026 draft class?

Apart from the obvious, his spirit stands out.

“He drags guys into the fight, if you will, not only in games but also in practice, makes (teammates) get there early, makes them stay later,” Leafs director of amateur scouting Mark Leach said at the scouting combine. “Those are special people. You bring people into the fight like that, it’s something about you. He has the ability to do that.”

The Leafs have their sights set on returning to the Stanley Cup playoffs in 2027 after missing this past spring for the first time in 10 years.

McKenna has the potential, and more, to help them accomplish that goal.

“The brain and the talent is evident, the instincts and his raw ability, how much family means to him, his roots, how important it is for him to give back to his community that has given him so much, I think those are all really interesting things,” Chayka said.

More to come …

[email protected]

X: @koshtorontosun

Read More

1. 

   Why the Maple Leafs quickly moved on and traded Samuel Ersson
2. 

   Wendel Clark, Matthew Schaefer offer NHL draft first-overall advice

Article content