It's been quite a long time since we've been able to say this, but the Toronto Maple Leafs have the best prospect in the NHL.
Not since the very brief months between Auston Matthews being drafted first overall and making his NHL debut 10 years ago, we've been able to say that our favourite hockey team has the best young player in the sport who has yet to make his NHL debut. In the latest top-100 prospect ranking to come out, Gavin McKenna sits at the very top.
Gavin McKenna crowned No. 1 prospect in the NHL
The Athletic's Scott Wheeler put out his top 100 prospect drafted NHL prospect rankings on Tuesday and as we've already said, McKenna sits at No. 1.
Here is what Wheeler had to say about McKenna:
"McKenna is a captivating and supremely gifted winger. His lean build and some bad habits (notably, a need to be more physically engaged and show more effort off-puck/detail) can lessen his shift-to-shift five-on-five impact at times, but the talent and upside are undeniable and unique among the game's prospects.Scott Wheeler, The Athletic
He's a flowing skater with corner speed more than straight-line speed (he lacks explosiveness in straight bursts), great edges and an ability to make plays at whatever pace is required — with a preference for slowing things down, at times to a fault. He’s impressive at carrying and dodging sticks through neutral ice to create entries. He has a first touch like glue, where the puck just lands and sticks to his blade when he’s catching it, even when it’s coming in hot or into compromising positions. He’s an excellent puck transporter and get-out-of-jail-free card who can skate pucks out of the zone himself and relieve pressure, though I’d like to see him be lower for that more often instead of cheating up ice. McKenna is extremely shifty with the puck, blending shoulder fakes into his playmaking. He has impressive maneuverability and adjustability from his hips down. He plays pucks into space and leads guys at an advanced level. He shields pucks well from defenders’ sticks when he can play in open ice and they try to close on him. He’s constantly changing directions and keeping defenders off him. He pre-scans and sees and reads the game at an elite level. The elements of a brilliant perimeter playmaker are all there.
... Still, despite some of the flaws in his game, McKenna projects as a first-line star winger and dynamic power-play tactician. Improvement in his five-on-five play and the consistency of his competitiveness will determine his ultimate impact beyond the counting stats he should rack up."
That's a whole lot of praise.
Ivar Stenberg, who was drafted right after McKenna last month to the San Jose Sharks, was ranked as the No. 2 prospect in the world; and Philadelphia Flyers phenom Porter Martone, who already has some NHL playoffs under his belt and was drafted sixth overall last year, is ranked No. 3. Three wingers as the top three prospects in the sport is certainly something.
One other Maple Leafs prospect named in the rankings
There was only one other Maple Leafs prospect who was among the top 100 and it was Easton Cowan, who is ranked all the way down at No. 70. The 21-year-old winger is certainly deserving of the recognition after having a very solid rookie year in the NHL, scoring 11 goals and 29 points in 66 games while averaging just 14:43 time-on-ice.
Cowan should have a much bigger role on next season's Leafs team and could very well cement a position in the top six next to Auston Matthews or John Tavares for the entire year.
While being all the way down at 70th overall in the rankings does not look too good, he's above some players like Tom Willander and Cole Eiserman, who were drafted higher in their years and were heralded as some top-end talent in previous rankings. Cowan is certainly special enough to get this national spotlight.
Now, we'll get to see both McKenna and Cowan in the Blue and White to start next season and build upon this recognition.
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