Gavin McKenna made his NHL pre-season debut Saturday against Montreal, and while he was held off the scoresheet, he showed enough slipperiness, skill and vision to prove the Maple Leafs were right to draft him with the top pick earlier this year.
When you're the No. 1 pick playing in the NHL for the first time, even if it is only a pre-season game, you can be forgiven if you're a little overwhelmed by everything.
The bells and whistles at the arena, the packed stands, and of course, a group of opposition players, many of whom are fighting for jobs.
So it could've been natural that Gavin McKenna, who made his debut as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, would be temporarily caught up in the mania of Leafs Nation.
However, against a tough Montreal Canadiens team Saturday night, McKenna made a first impression that Maple Leafs fans should be very happy with.
McKenna was held off the scoresheet against the Habs, but that was true of all but three Maple Leafs players in their 4-1 loss to Montreal. As for McKenna's all-around impact, there was a lot to like about what you saw from the 18-year-old.
Maple Leafs coach Jim Hiller gave McKenna 20:39 of ice time — fifth-most on the team, behind only Auston Matthews, John Tavares, William Nylander and Darren Raddysh — and McKenna's 16:11 of even-strength time was the most of any Toronto skater.
McKenna also played 4:22 on the power play, which could be an indication of where Hiller is going to use him this season.
For the most part, you saw what you wanted to see from him. He didn't impose his will on the game, and really, how many teenagers do you know who could do that?
McKenna's best assets — his creativity and his instincts — are already apparent. While it's true he didn't impact the game with any sense of physicality, that was never his forte, and everybody knew that when the Maple Leafs drafted him.
But the most encouraging part of McKenna's debut was that, as he finds his timing and better understands the ebbs and flows of the NHL game, his pure talent is going to twist defenders in knots and open up space for his linemates.
All in all, McKenna still has his work cut out for him as he adjusts to playing grown men in high-stakes situations. But the difference between the NHL game and major-junior hockey or the NCAA is the precision involved in every on-ice decision.
The sport's best players find the smallest openings to create space, make tape-to-tape passes, and bury goals in areas few players even think of going to. As McKenna adjusts and figures things out, his opponents are going to be dealing with fits of frustration as he becomes more slippery and crafty.
McKenna said after Saturday's game that he'd remember it for the rest of his life, and he should. But the true test for him is still to come.
That said, McKenna's results against Montreal should make Maple Leafs fans extremely happy. He's going to be a foundational player for at least the next decade, and as he works diligently to grow his game, Toronto is going to benefit immensely from it.
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