Gavin McKenna Still Tops NHL Draft Boards Despite Slow Start

The NHL Draft is five months away, and prospects from around the world are still vying to be selected with the first overall pick. For months, maybe even years, Canadian skater Gavin McKenna has been the odds-on favorite to hear his name called first by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman once the draft kicks off June 26 in Buffalo. But is that still the case?

After a lackluster start to his run at Penn State, the knives came out to tear down the 18-year-old McKenna. Then, the 2026 World Junior Championships rolled around, and something just clicked.

In the bronze medal game against Finland, McKenna scored one goal and notched three assists to lead Canada to a 6-3 win. Overall, he scored 14 points throughout the event, tying him for the seventh-most all-time by a draft-eligible player in World Junior Championship history.

The Consensus No. 1

According to NHL Central Scouting’s midterm ranking of the top North American skaters, McKenna, a native of Whitehorse, is the consensus selection to go first overall once the draft rolls around in June.

“Gavin McKenna is an elite talent with exceptional hockey sense, quickness and maturity, which has allowed him to dictate the play and influence games at every level he’s played,” Dan Marr, the director of NHL Central Scouting, said earlier this week. “He possesses a combination of unteachable skills and attributes that have been on record-setting display over the last couple of seasons and place him in a category of his own as the top prospect for the 2026 NHL Draft.”

McKenna, who is currently a freshman at Penn State, has scored four goals and recorded 15 assists in 18 games with the Nittany Lions. Overall, his team is 14-6 and sits in third place in the Big Ten, behind only Michigan and Wisconsin.

Oct 10, 2025; University Park, PA, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions forward Gavin McKenna (72) warms up for game against the Clarkson Golden Knights at Pegula Ice Arena. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images | Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

Prior to arriving stateside, McKenna spent parts of the past three seasons in the Western Hockey League with the Medicine Hat Tigers. There, he helped lead the team to the 2025 WHL championship and a Memorial Cup final appearance. It was that same season when he lit the world on fire with his scoring, finishing second in the WHL with 129 points on 41 goals and 88 assists. Many would call that No. 1 overall-pick worthy.

Just like Marr expressed, McKenna’s abilities at such a young age are what make him an attractive option for whichever team winds up with the first pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. He is an immediate game-changer; he is a player who can come in and make a team believe. And while no player jumping up from the amateur to the professional ranks is a sure thing, McKenna’s elite skills, even at just 18 years old, show that he is certainly capable of making the leap no questions asked.

So, with the draft approaching and prospects from around the world seeking to hear their name called first overall, it is McKenna who has separated himself from the rest of the pack. And if things stay on their current trajectory, with McKenna playing well for the Nittany Lions, then his status as the best prospect this draft class has to offer will remain unchanged.

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