2026 NHL Mock Draft: Building Gavin McKenna's Pro Comparison
There's no player in the 2026 NHL Draft with more attention on them than Gavin McKenna. And after at least two years of anticipation, he's about to be a key figure in the league.
Whether he goes No. 1 to the Toronto Maple Leafs or elsewhere, he's the latest young star to arrive ready to show the world what he can do.
While lots of hockey fans have watched McKenna's growth through junior and college hockey, what he does in the NHL remains to be seen, and how he develops will be worth watching. But what kind of talent does he possess? What are his skills, and what makes him such a fascinating player? We're here to parse that out.
We've watched plenty of video and game action of McKenna. We've asked and heard about who his own favorite players are and now we're going to put some of those traits out there compared to current NHL star players.
For such a special talent, there's a lot about him that makes him go from his offensive game to his playmaking to his shot and his determination.
We'll break them all down for you.
Updated 2026 NHL Mock Draft
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1. Toronto Maple Leafs: Gavin McKenna, LW, Penn State (NCAA).
2. San Jose Sharks: Chase Reid, D, Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
3. Vancouver Canucks: Caleb Malhotra, C, Brantford Bulldogs (OHL)
4. Chicago Blackhawks: Ivar Stenberg, LW/RW, Frolunda HC (SHL)
5. New York Rangers: Carson Carels, D, Prince George Cougars (WHL)
6. Calgary Flames: Keaton Verhoeff, D, University of North Dakota (NCAA)
7. Seattle Kraken: Viggo Bjorck, C/RW, Djurgardens IF (SHL)
8. Winnipeg Jets: Alberts Smits, D, Jukurit (Liiga)
9. Florida Panthers: Tynan Lawrence, C, Boston University (NCAA)
10. Nashville Predators: Daxon Rudolph, D, Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
11. St. Louis Blues: Ethan Belchetz, LW, Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
12. New Jersey Devils: Oscar Hemming, F, Boston College (NCAA)
13. New York Islanders: Adam Novotny, LW/RW, Peterborough Petes (OHL)
14. Columbus Blue Jackets: Ryan Lin, D, Vancouver Giants (WHL)
15. St. Louis Blues (via DET): Oliver Suvanto, C, Tappara (Liiga)
16. Washington Capitals: Nikita Klepov, LW, Saginaw Spirit (OHL)
17. Los Angeles Kings: Elton Hermansson, RW/LW, MoDo Hockey (Hockey Allsvenskan)
18. Washington Capitals (via ANA): Malte Gustafsson, D, HV71 (SHL)
19. Utah Mammoth: Ilia Morozov, F, Miami University (NCAA)
20. San Jose Sharks (via EDM): Egor Shilov, C, Victoriaville Tigres (QMJHL)
21. Philadelphia Flyers: Alexander Command, C, Orebro HK (SHL)
22. Pittsburgh Penguins: Wyatt Cullen, LW, USNTDP
23. Boston Bruins: JP Hurlbert, C, Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
24. Vancouver Canucks (via MIN): Marcus Nordmark, RW, Djurgardens IF U20 (U20 Nationell)
25. Seattle Kraken (via TBL): Xavier Villeneuve, D, Blainville-Boisbriand Armada (QMJHL)
26. New York Rangers (via DAL): Mathis Preston, RW, Vancouver Giants (WHL)
27. Buffalo Sabres: Jack Hextall, C, Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)
28. Montreal Canadiens: Maddox Dagenais, C, Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
29. St. Louis Blues (via COL): Casey Mutryn, RW, US National U18 Team (USNTDP)
30. Calgary Flames (via VGK): Liam Ruck, RW, Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
31. Carolina Hurricanes: Nikita Shcherbakov, D, Tolpar Ufa (MHL)
32. Ottawa Senators: Ryan Roobroeck, C, Niagara IceDogs (OHL)
Playmaking: Patrick Kane
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During the draft combine, McKenna said the player he grew up enjoying the most was Patrick Kane. When you watch the way he plays the game, you can see he has developed his own ways of doing things, much like Kane in his own style.
There's an effortless way McKenna handles the puck on offense that stands out similarly to Kane's. The way he carries it up the ice or into and around the zone, where he's got his head up and watching where his teammates are and heading, is very similar to the Red Wings star.
McKenna also has remarkable creativity with the puck, sometimes seemingly having second sight in threading passes to his teammates to where they're going to be rather than where they are. Whether it's a pass in the zone or a headman pass for a breakout, that ability all smacks of Kane's influence.
From the posters of Kane on his wall to the way he plays, if McKenna can transfer his play on the ice into the same kind of success, that would make for a great career.
Offensive Impact: Nikita Kucherov
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The brilliance in the offensive zone from Lightning superstar Nikita Kucherov is among the best we've seen in the NHL over the past few years.
He's got a blistering shot, a mind that is two plays ahead of everyone else, and the ability to thread passes that's second to none. He's a force at even strength, and he's absolutely lethal on the power play.
Kucherov's straightforward brilliance, as well as his deceptiveness in how he handles the puck and skates, are the kinds of traits a fully fledged version of McKenna could evolve into, given his own skills at his age.
He's able to handle the puck in the offensive zone in a way that both draws in and looks off defenders unsure of what he's going to do next. He has puck instincts that allow him to generate offense at any time at the college level, and as he hones that in the NHL, there's a high ceiling for him to improve.
We're not saying McKenna is at Kucherov's level right now because that would be extremely unfair to him and would downplay how incredible Kucherov is at this point in his career.
However, the tools McKenna has in his game and the potential he has open up the possibility of him being like Kucherov in how he plays the offensive game.
Shot: Artemi Panarin
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Shooting is not something you're going to think of first for McKenna, but he's going to find ways to score goals and they're often going to be highlight-reel style.
But a lot of times, he's going to bury them low in the zone and the slot while defenders and goalies are thinking he's going to dish off to a teammate.
That kind of style sounds a lot like Artemi Panarin.
Panarin is a guy who has piled up goals throughout his career, yet he's often most dangerous when setting up his teammates. Sure, he's had 30- and 40-goal seasons and is a dynamite force in the offensive zone, but his goal-scoring sneaks up on you. With McKenna's size and creativity, he's not going to be a force around the crease and is not going to park himself at the dot or in the slot to one-time pucks.
McKenna will be an all-over-the-zone player and will undoubtedly be looking to make plays first, but with the kinds of looks his play will generate, he's going to shoot often enough to pile goals up.
The comparison to Panarin may not be flattering for some, but if that's the kind of scorer McKenna turns into, that'll play in the NHL every day.
Competitiveness: Mark Stone
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Perseverance and outstanding play tend to stand out, but the dedication McKenna has put into improving throughout his draft season at Penn State, to excel at World Juniors, and then ultimately passing on going to World Championships to be best prepared for the combine shows how serious he's taken the process of getting to the NHL.
There's no quantitative measure of how competitive a player is or isn't, and oftentimes it's a matter of the stories told and the anecdotes that shape the narrative. But how competitive a player is can be seen in their work.
That kind of trait can be leadership with a letter on the chest or just by doing things consistently the right way. Vegas' Mark Stone is an example of that in the way he fights through injury and goes to the front of the attack to lead the Golden Knights.
In McKenna's case, the way he helped rally Penn State into the NCAA tournament, something noticed by Toronto's scouting staff, and then after the season focused on being ready for the draft showed he's a player who is laser focused on what's next.
All-Around Play: Jack Hughes
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Sometimes, the easiest way to compare a player is to pick out one of their contemporaries, and since McKenna is almost certainly going to be the No. 1 pick, looking at previous No. 1 picks is the easiest thing we can do.
When we look at the top picks from the past five or six years, the one McKenna bears the most resemblance to is Jack Hughes.
The size is the easiest to compare. Both are 5'11" and around 170 pounds, and although Hughes didn't play college hockey, he played for the USNTDP team that often played against college teams.
Hughes was a monster during his draft year and easily the No. 1 pick. In 26 exhibition games, mostly against NCAA teams, he had 52 points in 26 games with 13 goals while starring with teammates Cole Caufield, Trevor Zegras, and Matt Boldy. McKenna had 51 points in 35 games this season with Penn State, including 15 goals on a team that didn't have such elite teammates.
While Hughes' quickness and creativity with the puck made him a star player, McKenna's all-around offensive instincts and shot made him one of the most dangerous players in the NCAA.
McKenna's strength and size should fill out a bit more as he gets older and better used to the NHL, and, ideally, he can avoid the injuries that have plagued Hughes' career. But if he can provide a similar offensive impact in the NHL, whoever lands him will be more than pleased.
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