First overall pick Gavin McKenna will headline the Toronto Maple Leafs development camp this week, as the 18-year-old makes his first on-ice appearance in blue and white. The camp, which begins at the Ford Performance Centre, includes 53 players on the roster released Monday.
Camp Roster and Structure
The list includes all 10 of Toronto's picks from the NHL draft in Buffalo, held two days prior, along with 23 previous selections dating back to the Kyle Dubas era. Among the latter are forwards Hudson Malinoski (2023) and Nicholas Moldenhauer (2022). Exempted from camp are two young defencemen who recently finished with the Calder Cup champion Marlies: 2024 top pick Ben Danford and Noah Chadwick.
Assistant general manager Hayley Wickenheiser and her player development staff will run the camp, which includes off-ice bonding activities. The roster also features 26 free agents, many overlooked in previous drafts, seeking a break and potentially a spot at full rookie camp in September.
McKenna's Path to Camp
McKenna skipped an invitation to Team Canada at the world championships to focus on the NHL scouting combine, where the right winger's height was recalibrated to a budding six feet and he performed well in strength tests. His presence as the main attraction underscores the high expectations surrounding the first overall pick.
Other Prospects to Watch
Centre Tinus-Luc Koblar, the Leafs' first pick last year at 64th overall, excelled for Leksands in the Swedish league and for Norway at the world championships. At 6-foot-3, he shows promise as a playmaker and checker. Centre Miroslav Holinka, a 6-foot-2 fifth-rounder from Czechia, nearly doubled his points to 80 after his draft year with the Edmonton Oil Kings, adding seven goals in seven playoff games and an assist in his Marlies debut.
Defenceman Ethan MacKenzie, a long-shot saga twice passed over in the NHL draft before being taken 69th this past weekend, will test his size (6-1) and scoring touch (22 goals) before moving to the University of North Dakota. Defenceman Alexander Bilecki, a big playoff producer for Kitchener as it won this year's junior title, is among those Toronto needs to challenge for spots in coming years, along with MacKenzie, Danford, Chadwick, and William Villeneuve.
Goaltenders Jusso Ainasto and Patriks Plumins, picked back-to-back on Saturday, will be new objects of curiosity. Any Finnish goalie excites, though the Leafs still have bad memories of trading Tuukka Rask, and Latvia has produced some good ones as well.
