The Spirit of '72 is about to sweep Toronto again, but this time it is not about Paul Henderson's Summit Series heroics. Before being picked or even playing a game for his projected new team, Gavin McKenna's No. 72 jersey is already expected to be a hot seller.
At Wednesday's opener of the Sabres-Canadiens playoff series at Buffalo's KeyBank Center, a bold young Leafs fan wore a blue road jersey with McKenna's junior and NCAA No. 72 within a day of Toronto winning the NHL draft lottery. Despite boos from rival fans, he took a rinkside seat and delighted in trolling the crowd, pointing to the name and number in the same arena where McKenna is likely to be announced first overall in seven weeks.
A McKenna jersey was listed on Amazon for $349 US on Friday, and the manager of a downtown Toronto Sport Chek equipment and game apparel store expects sales of the No. 72 to take flight closer to the draft. Anthony Kozak, manager of Sport Chek at Maple Leaf Square next to Scotiabank Arena, said his staff had already printed up a couple of McKenna sweaters, including one for TSN for its draft lottery show, and some have since been bought by the public.
Kozak likened the hype to Shohei Ohtani when it looked like he would sign with the Jays. He noted that they printed up jerseys for fans who wanted them right away, but those fans were disappointed the next day. However, Kozak believes this will work out better for McKenna.
Is the Hype as Big as with Auston Matthews?
KeyBank Center is also where Auston Matthews was introduced the last time Toronto had the top pick in 2016. Leafs historian and Matthews memorabilia collector Mark Fera predicts McKenna's jerseys will proliferate the market leading to the June 26-27 draft, similar to Matthews's No. 34. Fera said the hype is going to be similar, as people have talked about how good McKenna is for the past two years, just like Auston. He described McKenna as a competitive little Canadian kid from Whitehorse, Yukon, which people in this town have loved going back to Wendel Clark and Doug Gilmour.
Fera got on the Matthews train early, bidding for two of his sweaters from the U.S. National Development Program and scoring one from his year with the Swiss League Zurich Lions. Matthews kept his four-goal sweater from his NHL debut in Ottawa, but Fera ended up with the second road sweater issued to Matthews, worn for his first assist and the No. 34 at season's end after breaking several rookie records. Fera already has a No. 72 from McKenna's WHL junior team, the Medicine Hat Tigers.
Fera said people called him crazy for spending $20,000 on those jerseys, but now they could be worth $60,000 to $80,000 if he ever wanted to sell them. He noted that the pricing of such items will not really take off until McKenna is actually drafted and plays, but his sources in auctions indicate hundreds of requests already to see when his first collectibles become available. Players wear more jerseys than they did 10 years ago as well.
What If the Leafs Don't Draft McKenna?
There is no guarantee Toronto takes McKenna first overall. Swedish winger Iver Stenberg is considered a solid option, and the Leafs have needs on defence and at centre, should Matthews decide to move on in the next couple of years after his contract. There is also the chance the Leafs trade down, but Fera cannot see that happening. He recalled being in the crowd in Buffalo for Auston, near Patrik Laine, and noted that some people are saying the same things today as then, questioning if Matthews is as good as everyone thinks. However, teams rarely trade top picks like this, and McKenna would be like getting Mitch Marner on steroids.
McKenna's choice of No. 72 is said to originate from his 2007 birth year and is a reverse of Jonathan Drouin's 27, an NHLer he grew up admiring.
MUST-WIN FOR MARLIES
The Toronto Marlies would like to extend what has been a wonderful week for the developmental side of the Leafs after the lottery. However, having missed a chance to upset Montreal's farm team with a playoff upset on home ice, they are in tough Saturday afternoon in Laval. The best-of-five North Division series sits 2-2 after the Marlies fell flat in a 4-0 loss at Coca-Cola Coliseum on Tuesday night. Now it is must-win at Place Bell, where they split the first two against the Rocket, including a 6-2 triumph in Game 2 that featured three points by Easton Cowan.
Toronto captain Logan Shaw said after Game 4 that the series-clincher is the hardest one to win. He acknowledged they lacked desperation, but it is okay, as they have done this all year where they come back stronger. They trust each other and have to enjoy it, including the building which will be loud and pumped with the parent Canadiens coming home for Game 3 against Buffalo.
Coach John Gruden does not expect to alter much with his lineup, almost unchanged since defeating Rochester in a best-of-three to open the AHL playoffs. Gruden replaced Artur Akhtyamov in net with Dennis Hildeby when down 3-0 in Tuesday's final period, likely a prelude to the older goalie getting Saturday's start. Gruden noted that Laval is a first-place team for a reason, but he knows this group is resilient and excited for the opportunity to get it back.
WORLD OF DIFFERENCE
There will be a higher profile for a couple of Leafs at the world hockey championship, starting next week in Zurich and Fribourg, Switzerland. While William Nylander is not on Team Sweden's roster, defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson was named its captain this week. Ekman-Larsson played at the Winter Olympics in February and has served as captain in previous tournaments. This follows his strong season, despite the Leafs' overall blueline issues, where he played almost every game and was nominated for the Bill Masterton Trophy.
Team USA has made Joseph Woll one of its three goalies, senior in NHL experience with Devin Cooley of the Calgary Flames and Chicago Blackhawks prospect Drew Commesso. Woll played in the world junior tournament a couple of times and was part of the Americans' gold-medal entry in 2017. In a 2025-26 regular season disrupted by absence and injury, Woll's record was 15-16-7 with an .899 save percentage.
Canada's full roster has not been filled as players become available through the first two rounds of NHL playoff elimination, but Leafs alternate captains John Tavares and Morgan Rielly had previously committed, both frequent national team participants in their careers. Canada plays Sweden on May 15 to open its schedule.
