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Wingers Gavin McKenna, Ivar Stenberg are 2026 top prospects and either would slot in nicely on Leafs’ top line
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Published May 05, 2026 • Last updated 21 minutes ago • 4 minute read
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Toronto Maple Leafs executive Mats Sundin appears on a video screen after the team he just joined won the NHL draft lottery for the first pick, drawn at NHL Network studio in Secaucus, N.J., on Tuesday, May 5, 2026. Photo by Stephen Whyno /AP PhotoArticle content
The Maple Leafs are back in business.
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The Leafs won the NHL draft lottery on Tuesday night.
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They will have the first pick overall in the 2026 National Hockey League draft.
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Wingers Gavin McKenna and Ivar Stenberg are the top prospects, and either one would slot in nicely on the Leafs’ top line.
Anything other than McKenna, at this point, would be surprising. The 18-year-old has been the No. 1 pick in the mock drafts that have been done most recently and has been in the talk to be first overall for months.
The off-season challenges for new Leafs general manager John Chayka suddenly might not be as daunting.
What a difference a day makes after Chayka and Mats Sundin were introduced during an awkward news conference on Monday afternoon.
“Just really excited for the organization, for the fan base,” Chayka said in a Zoom call not long after the lottery. “I think it’s a meaningful step. And yeah, elated.
“You don’t know what’s going to occur in these types of situations, but you do know you need some luck, and it happened.
“Certainly, when these things happen, it can change course and timelines, etc, but it’s not something that we’re going to change how we think about things. It’s a fortuitous bounce.”
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Whether the draft lottery win tilts anything in the favour of captain Auston Matthews deciding to remain with the Leafs is to be determined. Conversations with Chayka still need to take place.
Said Sundin, minutes after Toronto won: “I’m extremely happy for the Toronto Maple Leafs fan base. It’s great to have the first pick. Great night, great lottery.”
As a result of the lottery, the next four picks, in order, belong to San Jose, Vancouver, Chicago and the New York Rangers.
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The NHL draft will be held in Buffalo on June 26 and 27.
It’s a potential franchise-altering development for the Leafs, fresh off missing the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in 10 years.
Originally slotted to pick fifth, the Leafs had an 8.5% chance of winning the first pick.
Penn State’s Gavin McKenna skates against Arizona State during an NCAA college hockey game on Oct. 3, 2025, in Tempe, Ariz. Photo by Rick Scuteri /The Associated Press
McKenna, a native of Whitehorse, Yukon, had 51 points in 35 games for Penn State this past season after three years with Medicine Hat of the Western Hockey League.
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Stenberg, 18, had 33 points in 43 games for Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League. He’s regarded as an elite playmaker with a high hockey IQ and top-notch work ethic.
Chayka has been out of the NHL game for several years, yet he knows all about McKenna and what he could provide.
“I’ve tracked him for a number of years now,” Chayka said. “The skill level, the creativity, the puck ability, and his shot and release are all pretty special.
“Good package. It’ll be good to get with the scouts and talk through it all. I know there’s a lot of passion for a lot of players, including Gavin.”
Still, homework on the part of the Leafs, Chayka said, has to be done.
“The nice part is, I can answer honestly, we haven’t had scouting meetings yet, second day on the job,” Chayka said with a smile. “I think we’ll get together and we’ll go through everything as we should, be super-diligent and make sure we know everything.
“There’s a lot of always a lot of diligence when you’re picking first overall and making sure you nail it.
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“I’m always open to everything, but I do think when you get a chance to draft first overall, it’s obviously a special opportunity.”
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McKenna was part of Sportsnet’s lottery show as the balls dropped at the NHL Network’s offices in Secaucus, N.J., and spoke before the winner was revealed.
“There’s a big spotlight on me, I don’t have to be perfect, but I have to be on top of things and make sure I’m dialled in with habits on and off the ice,” McKenna said from Kelowna, B.C., where he is training. “I’m getting ready for whatever is next. I think in terms of my character, I think I grew.”
In February, following an alleged incident outside a bar in Pennsylvania, a felony aggravated assault charge against McKenna was dropped. McKenna is still facing misdemeanour charges.
It will be third time the Leafs have the first overall pick.
In 2016, they chose Matthews. In 1985, the Leafs selected Wendel Clark first overall.
The Leafs will transfer their first-round pick in 2027 or 2028 to the Boston Bruins as part of the Brandon Carlo trade. The other first-rounder in the next two years will go to the Philadelphia Flyers as part of the Scott Laughton trade.
Those possibilities could be moot, considering what McKenna or Stenberg might bring.
“The Maple Leafs, in my opinion, is the greatest hockey franchise in the world,” Sundin said. “It’s a great opportunity for whoever is going to be first overall to come in and represent the Toronto Maple Leafs. (He’s) going to enjoy it.”
A day after the Leafs were roughed up at the podium, the hockey gods picked them up.
Never a dull moment in Toronto.
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