TORONTO — Gavin McKenna arrived at Maple Leafs media day with two useful reminders that the No. 1 pick does not have to carry the whole room. Auston Matthews and John Tavares sat alongside the 18-year-old forward, each knowing the glare that follows a first-overall selection into his first NHL camp.
McKenna, the Whitehorse, Yukon, native taken first overall by Toronto from Penn State in the 2026 NHL Draft, is entering a dressing room built to cushion that transition. Matthews has offered his home for dinners, while Tavares has welcomed the rookie into his family home as McKenna adjusts to life in the Toronto market.
Quick facts
- McKenna was selected first overall by Toronto on June 26 in Buffalo.
- Toronto opens its season against the Montreal Canadiens at Scotiabank Arena on Sept. 29, health permitting.
- McKenna posted 51 points, including 15 goals, in 36 games at Penn State last season.
- After four goals in his first 16 NCAA games, he recorded 33 points in his final 19 outings.
- Training camp’s first official on-ice session is Thursday.
Matthews, the 2016 first pick, said the message to McKenna has been simple: be himself, put in the work, respect the people around him, absorb everything and enjoy the ride. The Leafs captain said McKenna has handled a hectic summer well and has looked comfortable around the club over the past several weeks.
Tavares, who went first overall to the New York Islanders in 2009, has given McKenna a close look at the daily routine required to stay in an NHL lineup. McKenna pointed to Tavares playing all 82 games last season as evidence of the veteran’s off-ice preparation and recovery habits.
“He’s been around the game for a while and knows what it takes,” McKenna said. “As a young player, it’s huge to learn from somebody like that.”
McKenna has already been skating with Leafs teammates for a couple of weeks, ahead of the formal start of camp. Coach Jim Hiller said the rookie has improved with each session, gaining comfort and confidence while giving teammates glimpses of his skill in scrimmages.
Hiller did not identify McKenna’s opening-camp linemates and would not attach statistical or roster targets to the rookie. The coach said Toronto will let McKenna’s play determine his place rather than burden him with a deadline to become a difference-maker immediately.
“We’re going to be smart,” Hiller said. “We’re not putting a limit on him. He’ll tell us where he belongs.”
The coach noted the support system available to McKenna, from Matthews and Tavares to William Nylander and Matthew Knies. Easton Cowan, 21, also gives McKenna a young peer working his way into the NHL group.
McKenna does not arrive without experience handling outside noise. His freshman season at Penn State started slowly as the 17-year-old faced older, stronger opponents after leaving the Canadian Hockey League for Big Ten hockey.
He scored four times in his first 16 games, drawing criticism from those who expected an immediate takeover. His season shifted after he represented Canada at the World Junior Championship in Minneapolis and St. Paul around the turn of the year.
McKenna returned with more confidence and piled up 11 goals and 22 assists over his final 19 games. He said the early criticism pushed him toward harder work, a lesson he expects to use again in a market where every shift will be examined.
“I want to begin this season as well as I can and hopefully not hear that noise,” McKenna said. “But if it comes, I see it as motivation.”
Former Toronto captain Wendel Clark, the club’s first-overall selection in 1985, urged patience. Clark said players between 18 and 20 are developing as people as well as hockey players, and the priority should be growth inside the team structure rather than demanding instant dominance.
Tavares saw encouraging signs when McKenna stayed with his family at their Muskoka summer home last month. He praised McKenna’s maturity, the values he brings from his family and his awareness of everything happening around him.
The past 11 weeks have been a sprint for McKenna. Justin Bieber announced Toronto’s selection in Buffalo, and the rookie has since trained in Ontario and British Columbia, thrown the ceremonial first pitch at a Blue Jays game, attended a World Cup match in Toronto and gone through rookie orientation in Virginia.
Still, McKenna recognizes the break he has received. Many first picks land on rebuilding teams and are asked to become the face and engine of the franchise at once. In Toronto, Matthews, Tavares, Nylander and goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky give him proven players to lean on.
McKenna said his hockey sense can help him make the adjustment, even if the NHL game requires time. For now, the rookie’s first camp is about listening, watching veteran habits and finding his footing before the Canadiens arrive on Sept. 29.
SEO Title: Gavin McKenna Begins Maple Leafs Camp With Matthews and Tavares Nearby
SEO Description: First-overall pick Gavin McKenna enters Toronto Maple Leafs training camp with support from Auston Matthews and John Tavares after a strong finish at Penn State.
