Toronto Maple Leafs select PSU’s Gavin McKenna No. 1 overall in 2026 NHL Draft
For the first time in program history, a Penn State Nittany Lion has gone No. 1 overall in the NHL Draft.
Winger Gavin McKenna, who spent only one season with PSU, was selected first overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday night in Buffalo, New York. McKenna was widely projected as the top pick heading into the season, and his selection was announced by longtime Maple Leafs fan and singer Justin Bieber.
He became just Penn State’s second-ever first-round pick. The first was Jackson Smith last year at No. 17 overall to the Columbus Blue Jackets.
“I’m so grateful,” McKenna said during ESPN’s live draft coverage, thanking both his family and home territory of Yukon, Canada. “I got no words right now.”
He continued: “Obviously, I worked my whole life toward this. So, for this to finally be here, it’s been a special moment.”
The former Nittany Lion will be part of a new regime with Toronto having a new head coach and general manager after missing out on the playoffs for the first time in a decade. The Maple Leafs are in a key transition year, and ownership is still aiming for a return to the postseason.
And McKenna, Toronto’s first No. 1 pick since 2016 (Auston Matthews), could play a sizable role in whether his new team takes a step forward.
At just 18 years old and 170 pounds, McKenna naturally has some questions about his physical readiness and maturity, possibly due in part to the fact he’s facing a misdemeanor simple assault charge. But he flashed his ability during his lone year at Penn State, tallying 15 goals and 36 assists for a total of 51 points in his 35 games — including helping the team to an NCAA tournament bid.
His assist total broke the program’s single-season record, and his seven assists and eight total points against Ohio State in late February also set new program marks. Overall, he set nine different Penn State records en route to becoming the program’s first-ever freshman to earn All-America honors.
PSU coach Guy Gadowsky said, in some ways, he’s never seen a prospect quite like McKenna.
“He’s a little bit like a martial artist in how he uses time and space,” Gadowsky told U.S. College Hockey Online. “He uses people’s aggression against them. When you come and try to check him, that’s not an intimidating thing — that’s a welcome thing. He uses your aggression and finds ways around it.
“So I think the progression — when you ask, ‘How was it?’ — I think it was just him learning what he can do at this level in time and space and being comfortable with it. Because he does manipulate time and space in a very, very different way than I’ve ever seen.”
CDT reporter Josh Moyer contributed to this report
This story was originally published June 26, 2026 at 7:19 PM.
