Typically, New York City is the biggest pressure cooker environment in North American sports, but when it comes to the NHL, it’s unquestionably Toronto. It’s been 59 years since the Maple Leafs won their last Stanley Cup in 1957, and just as Auston Matthews, the organization’s most recent No. 1 overall pick in 2016, was, Gavin McKenna will be billed as the savior in 2026.
Though his lone collegiate season at Penn State, McKenna maintained his status as the top prospect in the class, and is the presumptive No. 1 overall pick when Toronto goes on the clock on June 26 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo for the NHL Draft. However, it wasn’t all happy days in Happy Valley.
That process of problem-solving in a much different style of game impressed his head coach, Guy Gadowsky, who made the case for McKenna to be the No. 1 overall selection in an appearance on TheLeafsNation podcast. With his comments, Gadowsky also highlighted the one thing McKenna needed at Penn State and will need in the NHL.
“His ability to adapt and improve is incredible,” Gadowsky said. “What he just needs is time to figure it out because he will. He absolutely will. He’s proven that time and time again, even as such a young player in the NCAA.”
“I think his confidence and his ability to adapt and improve is incredible… as long as you give him time to figure this out, he will. He absolutely will”
— TheLeafsNation (@TLNdc) June 2, 2026
Guy Gadowsky has no doubt Gavin McKenna will adjust to the NHL.@thegoldenmuzzy | @Jay_D_Rosehill
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McKenna won’t have time to grow into his game in Toronto
Aside from an off-ice incident that was rectified, McKenna didn’t consistently dominate a college hockey landscape with more talent than ever. Once he got his footing, however, he took off, winning the Big Ten scoring title with 11 goals and 27 assists in 24 conference games and setting the program record with 36 assists, along with the freshman program record with 51 points.
McKenna himself admitted that there was a significant change from junior to college hockey, with a different style of game and much heavier opponents. Players like former Michigan State forward Porter Martone, who had a stellar postseason with the Philadelphia Flyers this spring, have proven that it may not be such a drastic transition to the NHL for every prospect. But Martone is a much bigger player than McKenna, with more college experience and much fewer expectations.
McKenna is about to be thrown into the same pressure cooker that drove Toronto native Mitch Marner out of town after repeated playoff struggles, and now in Vegas, Marner has the Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Final and is leading the team in points this postseason. It’s a tough environment for any player to handle, and certainly not a fanbase with a whole lot of patience. Without a Stanley Cup since 1967, though, you’d think they’d have learned something by now.
Juxtapose that with the San Jose Sharks, who have the No. 2 overall pick. Macklin Celebrini is a rising superstar, but the Sharks are hidden in a market that would let McKenna develop and experience his growing pains without the pressure of rescuing an Original Six franchise from a five-decade drought.
It may not be the best thing for McKenna to go No. 1 overall, but it’s almost certainly his fate. So, without the time Gadowsky thinks he needs, he’ll need to hit the ground running or learn to have some thick skin.
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