It can’t be said that Gavin McKenna is entering Penn State with low expectations.
The projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft drew more praise Tuesday when head coach Guy Gadowsky compared him to a man many believe to be the greatest of all-time.
“I was fortunate enough to grow up to watch Wayne Gretzky play for Edmonton, and I think one of the things that makes him so special is that he is so creative,” Gadowsky said in a media availability, per The Daily Collegian, a Penn State student newspaper. “His mind is just very different. And there’s no way that I or anybody else on our staff thinks like Gavin does. He is a very, very, special, special, special athlete who thinks very differently.”
McKenna, the 17-year-old from Whitehorse, recently committed to Penn State after three seasons with the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers following an NCAA rule change that allows CHLers to play U.S. college sports.
Gadowsky, an Edmonton native who played professional hockey from 1982 to 1996 but never reached the NHL, said the recruitment process kicked into high gear after the Tigers’ season ended with a loss in the Memorial Cup final.
“That’s really when (we) really started looking at it… (We were) nervous until it’s done, but once it was on SportsCenter and done, it felt very, very good, and I’m pumped for the Penn Staters that get to watch this guy,” Gadowsky, 57, said.
McKenna is sure to draw even more eyeballs to Pegula Ice Arena, where the Nittany Lions are coming off their first-ever appearance in the Frozen Four.
The Canadian was named the CHL’s player of the year this past season — the third-youngest to receive the award after Sidney Crosby and John Tavares — after piling up 129 points (41 goals, 88 assists) in 56 regular-season contests. He also recorded 38 points (nine goals, 29 assists) in 16 playoff games.
Gadowsky, Penn State’s only coach since the program entered the Division I ranks in 2012, said he doesn’t want to mess with McKenna’s winning formula.
“By no means am I ever going to talk to him about how his mind creates. That’s him and that’s going to be really fun to watch,” Gadowsky said. “That goes for all of our athletes as well. I mean that’s partly what I think makes Penn State hockey fun: we certainly encourage creativity.”
When he officially committed to Penn State on ESPN on July 8, McKenna said he hopes to help push the school over the top.
“I think the main goal obviously is to win a championship,” McKenna said.
The Nittany Lions’ men’s hockey program has produced three NHL players, none of whom have played more than 26 games.
And so if McKenna even comes close to matching the hype that surrounds him, he could indeed quickly become known as Penn State hockey’s ‘Great One.’
