Gavin McKenna is officially a Toronto Maple Leaf.
The Maple Leafs signed the 2026 No. 1 pick to a three-year, entry-level contract, the team announced on Friday.
McKenna is coming off a freshman season at Penn State where he put up 15 goals and 36 assists for 51 points across 35 NCAA games following a pair of dominant campaigns with the Western Hockey League's Medicine Hat Tigers.
The 18-year-old joins an Original Six franchise coming off a disappointing 2025-26 that started with Stanley Cup aspirations before spiralling down the drain in spectacular fashion.
Toronto, which has a new head coach and general manager following a 28th-place finish, then got a terrific bounce when it won the draft lottery despite entering with odds of just 8.5 per cent.
The only thing left up in the air for McKenna now is what number he will wear on his jersey when he suits up for Toronto. After the Maple Leafs signed former Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky on Wednesday, McKenna said he would give up his No. 72 for the veteran netminder.
Bobrovsky said Friday that he accepted McKenna's offer, leaving the rookie without a clear number choice.
He wore No. 72 at Penn State last season and with the WHL's Medicine Hat Tigers, and his backup Nos. 9 and 27 are retired by Toronto in honour of Charlie Conacher, Ted Kennedy, Darryl Sittler and Frank Mahovlich.
