Gavin McKenna’s friends and family in Canada’s Yukon Territory always knew he had a gift.
Now, the rest of the hockey world is about to see it up close.
The Toronto Maple Leafs selected McKenna with the No. 1 overall pick of the NHL draft on Friday in Buffalo, N.Y.
The 18-year-old McKenna was widely expected to be the top pick after a standout freshman season at Penn State, where he played left wing and tallied 51 points (15 goals, 36 assists) in 35 games. McKenna also played for Team Canada in the World Junior Championships, when he notched 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) in seven games for the bronze medalists.
Pop star and noted Maple Leafs fan Justin Bieber announced McKenna as the No. 1 pick.
“I’m so grateful,” McKenna said. “I’ve got no words right now.”
The spotlight on McKenna, a native of Whitehorse, Yukon, will be bright in Toronto. After the Maple Leafs finished one spot out of last place in the Eastern Conference with 78 points, they picked No. 1 overall for the third time in franchise history.
The Maple Leafs selected star captain Auston Matthews with the top overall pick 10 years ago, and in 1985 they drafted forward Wendel Clark No. 1 overall. Matthews is in the middle of an excellent career and Clark spent 15 seasons in the NHL, 13 of those with Toronto.
After his selection, McKenna watched a video message from Matthews, who welcomed him to Toronto and said he looked forward to playing with him.
“Obviously, he’s a special player,” McKenna said. “It would mean the world to play with him, learn from him. They’ve got a lot of talent in Toronto, got a lot of experience. As a young guy coming into the league, I want to learn as much as I can.”
Winning the draft lottery made this a simple call for Toronto’s new front-office heads, general manager John Chayka and senior adviser Mats Sundin, who last week named Jim Hiller the franchise’s new head coach.
The San Jose Sharks used the No. 2 pick to select Swedish forward Ivar Stenberg. The 18-year-old tallied 33 points (11 goals, 22 assists) in 43 games for Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League last season and joins a Sharks youth movement that includes former first-round picks Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith and Michael Misa.
“Super excited,” Stenberg said. “They have something really good going on, and I’ll try to join that and make the roster as fast as I can.”
At No. 3, Vancouver selected center Caleb Malhotra from Brantford of the Ontario Hockey League. His father, Manny Malhotra, is the Canucks’ new head coach.
The younger Malhotra wore his father’s Canucks sweater when he was a young child. Now, he will wear his own.
“Unbelievable,” said Malhotra, whose uncle is NBA Hall of Famer Steve Nash. “This is just beyond a dream come true.”
Manny Malhotra said he wanted the night to be about his son.
“The only hat I want to wear (tonight) is my ‘dad hat,'” he said. “We’re so proud of him, just seeing the work that he’s put in over the years and realizing his dream.”
The hometown Sabres crowd cheered loudly as former Buffalo Bills running back Thurman Thomas announced Buffalo’s pick at No. 4. The Sabres selected defenseman Daxon Rudolph from Prince Albert of the Western Hockey League.
Rudolph smiled toward the crowd as he was asked to describe his style of play.
“I like to play a complete game, both offense and defense,” Rudolph said. “I take a lot of pride in it. I’m going to try to be a smart player out there and play in all situations.”
The New York Rangers rounded out the top five picks by selecting defenseman Alberts Smits — the highest-drafted Latvian player in NHL history — from Jukurit in Finland’s Liiga, although he finished the season on loan with Red Bull Munchen in Germany. Smits (6-foot-3, 205 pounds) is a physical player who could quickly reach the NHL, where he will add size and strength to the Rangers’ blue line.
The next five picks featured the Calgary Flames selecting defenseman Carson Carels at No. 6, the Seattle Kraken taking defenseman Chase Reid at No. 7, the Winnipeg Jets selecting center Viggo Bjorck at No. 8, the Sharks selecting defenseman Keaton Verhoeff at No. 9 and the Nashville Predators picking forward Wyatt Cullen at No. 10.
Cullen’s father, Matt Cullen, won three Stanley Cup rings and scored 266 goals in 1,516 NHL games. The younger Cullen is set to play collegiately for Minnesota this season.
“I’m just so happy right now,” Wyatt Cullen said.
The St. Louis Blues had the next pick at No. 11, and they used it on center Tynan Lawrence out of Boston University. The New Jersey Devils used the No. 12 pick to select Swedish center Alexander Command.
Another Swedish player heard his name called a few minutes later when the New York Islanders selected defenseman Malte Gustafsson at No. 13. The Columbus Blue Jackets took Finnish native and Boston College standout forward Oscar Hemming at No. 14, and the Anaheim Ducks selected forward Nikita Klepov out of the Ontario Hockey League at No. 15.
Klepov registered 97 points (37 G, 60 A) in 67 games with Saginaw last season. He is committed to play collegiately for Michigan State next season.
The Ducks drafted Klepov one day before his 18th birthday.
“It’s a perfect birthday gift,” Klepov said with a chuckle. “I’m very excited to join Anaheim.”
St. Louis used its second pick of the first round to select center Maddox Dagenais at No. 16.
The back half of the first round included the following selections:
17. Utah Mammoth — LW Ethan Belchetz
18. Washington Capitals — C Oliver Suvanto
19. Los Angeles Kings — RW Elton Hermansson
20. Buffalo Sabres — C Ilia Morozov
21. San Jose Sharks — D Ryan Lin
22. Pittsburgh Penguins — RW Liam Ruck
23. Detroit Red Wings — LW JP Hurlbert
24. Vancouver Canucks – LW Adam Novotny
25. Ottawa Senators — RW Jonas Lagerberg Hoen
26. Montreal Canadiens — RW Gleb Pugachyov
27. Philadelphia Flyers — D Maksim Sokolovskii
28. Anaheim Ducks — LW Marcus Nordmark
29. Vegas Golden Knights — D Juho Piiparinen
30. Calgary Flames — C Jack Hextall
31. Nashville Predators — D Tommy Bleyl
32. Ottawa Senators — RW Jaxon Cover
Hurlbert, whom the Red Wings selected with the 23rd pick, is the latest Texas native to be drafted into the NHL. He grew up near Dallas in Allen, Texas, and he is coming off a 97-point season (42 G, 55 A) with Kamloops of the Western Hockey League.
“Being from Dallas, just having the support with my family, all my friends, my teammates, my coaches who got me there, I’m just so excited,” Hurlbert said.
Rounds 2-7 of the draft are slated for Saturday.
–Field Level Media
