Last hockey season was a good one for Gavin McKenna in the Canadian Sport School Hockey League's U18 division. He was their top scorer with 65 points in 35 games.
McKenna's outstanding performance led to him becoming the first overall draft pick by the Medicine Hat Tigers in the upcoming Western Hockey League (WHL) season. "I kind of knew that I was bound to accomplish something," McKenna said from his Whitehorse home. "But, yeah, it came quick.
So, uh, it was a bit surprising." That's because McKenna is just 14 years old. With the first-overall pick in the 2022 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WHLDraft?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WHLDraft</a>, the <a href="https://twitter.com/tigershockey?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Tigershockey</a> select forward Gavin McKenna of the <a href="https://twitter.com/rha_kelowna?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@rha_kelowna</a>. <a href="https://t.co/NyKycBbsPI">pic.twitter.com/NyKycBbsPI</a> According to the CSSHL, he's just the third player to be granted exceptional player status by B.C.
Hockey and Hockey Alberta, behind the WHL's Connor Bedard and Matthew Savoie, who is a top prospect in the 2022 NHL draft taking place Thursday at 7 p.m.