McKenna arrives in Toronto after being No. 1 pick in 2026 NHL Draft

TORONTO -- Gavin McKenna arrived in his new home Saturday, but it was not the first time the 18-year-old forward, who was selected No. 1 by the Toronto Maple Leafs at the 2026 Upper Deck NHL Draft on Friday, has been here.

Many minor hockey tournaments over the years brought him to town, he said, but this time meant much more.

"Just excitement," McKenna said. "Last night was a crazy night, I was so excited the whole night and just a lot of energy, but yeah, Toronto is an amazing place. They love their sports, love their hockey team and have so many passionate fans.

"I'm excited, and even when I've been in the city before I was drafted, people were coming up to me and asking for photos. I'm excited to meet all these people and get comfortable in the city."

After meeting with the media at the Maple Leafs' practice facility, McKenna headed downtown to Rogers Centre for another new experience.

"I'm going to the Blue Jays game today," said McKenna, who will be throwing out the ceremonial first pitch prior to the game. "I've never been to a baseball game, so I'm obviously a Blue Jays fan and looking forward to that. But just hanging out and chilling out. Development camp starts up pretty quick, so I want to make sure I'm ready for that."

The Maple Leafs begin development camp Monday, with on-ice sessions scheduled to take place July 2-4. 

"You're not just going to step into the League and hop right onto the first line; I've got to earn that and prove myself so that's going to be big motivation for me this summer because guys like (Auston Matthews and John Tavares) are the guys you want to play with and surround yourself with so I'm going to work hard for it," McKenna said.

Somewhat impressively, McKenna said he has done a good job of keeping his phone number on the down-low. He received about 60 text messages after being drafted Friday, including from Matthews and Tavares.

"(Matthews) said, 'Congrats, looking forward to snapping it around' with me," McKenna said. "(Tavares said), 'Take it all in, you only get to go through it once so just enjoy it with your family and have fun with it.'"

There was another message in particular, though, that shocked McKenna.

"I didn't get too many wild ones, but Patrick Kane texted me. He's my idol, so that was cool," McKenna said.

"He's who I grew up watching. I don't know if it was all the YouTube highlights that made me play like him, but he's someone I've always watched, just how creative he is and how smart he is, someone who has just rubbed off on me, I guess."

As for the pressure of playing in Toronto in front of a rabid fanbase, McKenna said his experience before and after the Draft has been terrific thus far.

"They've been super cool," McKenna said. "As soon as the Draft Lottery happened (on May 5), my phone was kind of blowing up. They're just so passionate, there's so many of them and it was super cool. When I was downtown for the World Cup game before the Draft, I ran into a bunch of Leafs fans and they were all awesome to me. Just amazing people. I can't wait to get really close with that fanbase and can't wait to play in front of them.

"(The pressure) is something I haven't been too scared of. I've learned how to deal with it from a young age, this year especially with the Draft and being the first kind of guy to go to college, there was a lot of eyes on me, so it's something I've learned how to deal with. When you're playing hockey, you kind of just block it out. When you're staying off social media it's easier, but it's nothing I'm not ready for."