Presumed No. 1 NHL pick seeing draft stock take a hit?

17-year-old Gavin McKenna is one of the top prospects in hockey and the presumptive No. 1 pick in the upcoming 2026 NHL Draft. Currently playing NCAA hockey for the Penn State Nittany Lions, he’s gotten off to a productive start, scoring 14 points in 12 games. But even with that production, The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler has indicated that McKenna’s performances in college hockey thus far have some left NHL teams wanting more.

Wheeler reported yesterday that after McKenna’s Penn State dropped back-to-back games against Michigan State in East Lansing, “the gathering collection of scouts and hockey folks weren’t kind to” McKenna in their thoughts postgame. Wheeler reported that “multiple NHL scouts” commented to The Athletic on McKenna’s “work rate off the puck, a number of backchecks he appeared to give up on,” and perhaps most distressingly for McKenna’s draft stock, “an ongoing desire for more effort.” Wheeler stopped short of saying that McKenna’s status as 2026’s top prospect was truly under threat; he is still a point-per-game NCAA freshman, after all, and his incredible skill level is still evident. But Wheeler did note that “this college hockey season has revealed” that McKenna is right now “a flawed player” whose flaws were better masked when he was playing in, and dominating, the WHL.

Other notes from around the hockey world:

• Injury issues have once again surfaced for Vegas Golden Knights veteran William Karlsson, who left last night’s loss to the Anaheim Ducks with an injury. The Athletic’s Jesse Granger relayed word from Vegas head coach Bruce Cassidy last night, who guessed that Karlsson would be out on a day-to-day basis, but did also note that they don’t know for sure the extent of his injury. Since Vegas is not on the ice today, the earliest an update on Karlsson’s status is likely to be released is Monday. Karlsson played in just 53 games last season due to injury and has seven points through 14 games in 2025-26.
• Toronto Maple Leafs veteran forward Scott Laughton left last night’s loss against the Boston Bruins with an upper-body injury after finding himself on the wrong end of a Nikita Zadorov body check. Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube told the media after the game, including The Hockey News’ David Alter, that the severity of Laughton’s injury is currently still being evaluated, but he did note that the player will miss the Maple Leafs’ game Sunday. Per TSN’s Mark Masters, Berube expressed frustration regarding the hit that injured Laughton, saying postgame “I thought it was a head shot.” Injuries have limited Laughton to just two games played this season, his first coming on Nov. 5.