The Chicago Blackhawks would find drafting someone like Gavin McKenna a redeeming prize for their tough season.
The Chicago Blackhawks finished the 2025-26 season 2-7-1 over their final 10 games. That put them at 29-39-14 (72 points) for the season, good for 31st place. Although they had an 11-point improvement from a year prior, they finished second-to-last for the second straight season.
That result will give them a 13.5% chance of winning the draft lottery. If they did so, landing Gavin McKenna would be a redeeming ending to the season after a tough finish. He would have a chance to be another game-changing piece on the young Chicago roster.
McKenna entered the 2025-26 Penn State season with people calling him a generational talent. His final year with the Medicine Hat Tigers sure made it seem that way as he had 41 goals and 88 assists for 129 points in 56 games played.
However, the NCAA was a wake-up call for the young forward, as his opponents were bigger, faster, and stronger, and created a much better resistance defensively than what he was used to.
The season was a tale of two halves for McKenna. The first half saw him struggle. There were times when his opponents outmuscled him and made it tough to make plays the way he was able to in Medicine Hat.
McKenna then played for Team Canada at the World Junior Championships, and he put up lots of points. The team didn't have the success that is expected of Hockey Canada, but he was over a point per game player.
Despite finding the scoresheet often (4 goals, 10 assists, 14 points in 7 games), he didn't look like the game-breaker that he was known to be at times. Team Canada does play more of a team-first style, but everyone is always looking for more when it comes to players as hyped as McKenna.
When he returned to Penn State, he started to dominate the way that was expected of him. He finished the college season with 15 goals and 36 assists for 51 points in 35 games played.
Penn State failed to make the Frozen Four, but on an individual level, McKenna should feel good about the way his year went as a whole. There was a bump in the road when it came to his draft stock, but he responded to it well on the ice.
McKenna's game is special because of his offensive abilities. He can shoot and is willing to shoot often, and he is cerebral with his decision-making. With some of the talent in place, with some of Chicago's bright young stars, might help him get even more out of those attributes.
There is still a chance that Ivar Stenberg or one of the highly touted defensemen is taken ahead of him, but don't count on it at this point. If the Blackhawks win the lottery, he'd be the perfect choice.
Pairing him with Connor Bedard, someone he is friendly with off the ice, is an enticing possibility for Chicago. If he developed the way that everyone knows he can, it would make this disaster of a 2025-26 season (especially at the end) worth it.
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