No stranger to pressure, Whitehorse's Gavin McKenna embraces Memorial Cup spotlight

Gavin McKenna is ready to step into the Memorial Cup spotlight — and he doesn't plan to blink.

After all, the 17-year-old phenom is no stranger to wall-to-wall media coverage and sky-high expectations.

"My whole life has kind of prepared me for this," he said in a phone interview. "Growing up, I've kind of dealt with it, so it's nothing new to me."

McKenna led the Medicine Hat Tigers to the Western Hockey League title and will be the main attraction of a star-studded event when competition for Canadian junior hockey's top prize begins Friday in Rimouski, Que.

The tournament will put a cap on a sensational year for the gifted six-foot, 165-pound winger from Whitehorse.

Widely projected as the top pick in the 2026 NHL draft, McKenna flashed his dynamic playmaking and piled up 38 points in 16 playoff games after a highlight-filled regular season of 129 points in 56 contests.

His dominant campaign included a 54-game point streak from Nov. 2 to May 11, the Canadian Hockey League's longest since 2000.

And although Canada suffered a disappointing quarterfinal exit, McKenna also headlined the country's roster at the world junior hockey championship in Ottawa earlier this year.    

"I've been on big stages before and I've played with lots of pressure," he said. "The whole year there's kind of been a spotlight on me, so it's nothing I'm not used to.    

"It's just some more hockey games, is the way I'm looking at it."

Tigers head coach Willie Desjardins has watched a circus follow his young star all season.

"It's probably a little bit unfair for anybody at his age. It has been, even now. He gets an awful lot of attention," Desjardins said. "He likes focusing on hockey. That's what he wants to do, so I think that'll be a little bit