Gavin McKenna scores 1st NHL goal for Leafs

The No. 1 overall pick at the 2026 draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs scored on Nashville Predators netminder Juuse Saros in the second period of his fourth professional game Tuesday.

McKenna took a pass from Auston Matthews before ripping a shot upstairs and then dropping to one knee in celebration at Scotiabank Arena.

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The 18-year-old added an assist on Toronto’s opener off the stick of William Nylander for his first NHL point.

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The Maple Leafs missed the playoffs for the first time in a decade last spring, but beat the draft lottery odds and won the right to select McKenna with the first overall selection in June.

The Whitehorse product’s addition was just one of a number of new faces to arrive in Toronto during a seismic off-season that included the additions of goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and defenceman Darren Raddysh before the club acquired winger Kirill Marchenko one day before its regular-season opener.

McKenna, who tore up the Canadian Hockey League before spending 2025-26 in the NCAA, entered play averaging 14 minutes 32 seconds of ice time with three shots on target and a minus-3 rating through three games.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 6, 2026.