On Saturday morning, General Manager Kyle Dubas announced that the club has signed forward Gavin McKenna, the consensus number-one overall selection in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, to a maximum three-year, entry-level contract.
According to PuckPedia, the deal will carry an average annual value (AAV) of $1.075 million.
McKenna, 18, was taken by the Leafs with the first pick of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft.
Officially official 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/qEYSFHSIUg
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) July 3, 2026
During the 2025-26 campaign, McKenna played collegiately for Penn State, where he put up 15 goals and 36 assists for 51 points in 35 games, which tied him as the fifth-highest scorer in the NCAA. In his final season with Medicine Hat in 2024-25, he had 41 goals and 88 assists for a whopping 129 points in 56 games.
Internationally, McKenna represented Canada at the IIHF World Junior Championship in 2025 and 2026. In the 2025 tournament, he had just a goal in five games as Canada fell to Czechia in the quarterfinals. In 2026, however, he dominated with four goals and 10 assists for 14 points in seven games, with Canada ultimately taking bronze.