The Toronto Maple Leafs‘ brutal season in 2025-26 was followed by the most fortunate of NHL Draft lottery luck to land them the No. 1 overall pick.
Because of the player Gavin McKenna is, and has the potential to come, it all might work out beautifully in the long run.
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That’s how it felt on Wednesday night in preseason action.
It really took just one cool play for McKenna to have Maple Leafs fans ready to see their rookie rock once the regular season arrives.
He got the puck in his own defensive zone but wasn’t fazed, using fancy stickwork to go right by the forecheck and get it down the ice:
That takes a ridiculous level of confidence to attempt, but it also takes crazy skill to run a give-and-go to yourself right past one defender and then take it directly into a deke past the next guy.
McKenna, even just in those few seconds, made it quite clear that he’s pretty much as advertised.
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The Athletic’s NHL Draft analyst, Scott Wheeler, has spent a lot of time watching McKenna.
This is what he wrote on X while watching the youngster play against the Senators in the preseason on Wednesday night:
“One of the better games I’ve seen McKenna play in the last year. Looks unbelievable. His deficiencies (size, habits, off-puck detail/commitment) haven’t had any meaningful impact. Pace is high and he’s not drifting to the perimeter. So many positives. Preseason, etc., and not trying to be mean, but bit of an indictment of coaching/talent around him at Penn State?”
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He may not have needed a dig in there at Penn State, but it’s clear that there’s a ton of belief in McKenna already.
Especially hearing it from Wheeler, who knows what McKenna is and isn’t good at from watching him so much, it’s gotta be a highly encouraging assessment for Toronto fans.
The Maple Leafs do not have any more officially scheduled preseason games.
They will play on the Opening Night of the 2026-27 NHL season right at the start of the action that night. Toronto is at home, and they’ll host the Montreal Canadiens in a battle of two talented hockey teams.
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McKenna will be out there often, one would assume, although there’s still time for his exact role to reveal itself.
What’s more clear already is that NHL speed and size won’t bother McKenna. He was the No. 1 overall pick for a reason.
Depending on how well other Maple Leafs players bounce back, McKenna may or not have to carry Toronto at times. But if he’s asked to have a high level of responsibility for the Maple Leafs, McKenna seems ready — and his NHL regular season debut is less than a week away.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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