Case made for Maple Leafs trading down, not picking Gavin McKenna in NHL Draft
This would be a bold move by Toronto.
Case made for Maple Leafs trading down, not picking Gavin McKenna in NHL Draft originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . The general assumption is that the Toronto Maple Leafs will use the No.
1 overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft to take Canadian phenom Gavin McKenna. But what if they don't want the Penn State standout? That would point to Swedish winger Ivar Stenberg, but maybe they wouldn't want him, either.
That's the thought explored in a recent appearance on Leafs Morning Take by ESPN's Ray Ferraro . Ferraro essentially says that a trade down shouldn't be off the table. “If you don’t think McKenna and Stenberg are head and shoulders above everybody, and you like a defenseman almost as much, then why wouldn’t you trade down?
” Ferraro said. “Why wouldn’t you acquire another asset and move down two or three picks if somebody is willing to make that jump and pick up another good asset? It doesn’t mean you have to go do it, but I would explore it.