Gavin McKenna Getting Hot At The Right Time For Penn State Men’s Hockey
If we’re being completely honest, the expectations that were placed upon Gavin McKenna to be the best player in college hockey right out of the gate were unrealistic. He doesn’t turn 18 until December, and he was going from dominating a league full of his peers to a league where he’s facing burly, senior defensemen and shooting on goalies who are seven years older than him.
There was always going to be an adjustment period, but the sheer talent that the Whitehorse, Yukon, native possesses has been on display all season, even without the gaudy, video game numbers that some expected.
“There is a transition to college hockey,” head coach Guy Gadowsky said about McKenna after a victory against LIU. “He’s 17, playing against 24-year-olds. There’s a transition, so give him some time.”
At that point, McKenna was in the midst of a stretch of four games with only one assist on the power play to his name. Since his great opening series in Arizona State, he hadn’t had an opportunity similar to his one-timer that ultimately won the Nittany Lions the game and secured the sweep in Tempe.
Everyone around him remained insistent that the production was coming. The connection between him and Aiden Fink had seen a lot of open ice flash, but the two hadn’t been able to generate many goals as Gadowsky looks for someone to center the two talented forwards for extended periods. But against Stonehill, in two tighter-than-expected games, you saw the brilliance that was promised.
McKenna’s first goal at Pegula Ice Arena was a game-tying goal, which saw him get on the ice with the puck in the offensive zone, rotate down towards the crease, and receive a great feed from JJ Wiebusch at the end of his shift to pot a goal that was not only huge for the team, but for McKenna. After four straight games of the crowd buzzing whenever he got the puck, he delivered on a bang-bang play:
While it was nice to see him deliver in 5-on-5 play, his wizardry is at its best on the man-advantage. McKenna has taken the role of quarterbacking the uber-talented Penn State power play and has been in the middle of several of their biggest goals this season. In the dying seconds of Friday’s bout in a tie game, McKenna ripped a shot from the point that was deflected into the back of the net by Wiebusch for the game-winning goal.
“It felt good,” McKenna said on Friday night after the game. “We knew we needed to win that game, so for us to find a way to stick with it and come up with that win is huge.”
The encore was just as good on Saturday night for McKenna, getting a second consecutive multi-point performance. He started with a shot that was eerily similar to the one in Arizona, receiving a pass back from Charlie Cerrato and ripping it over the left shoulder of the Stonehill goaltender for his second power play goal of the season.
He got his fourth and final point of the weekend by finally converting a play that he’s done frequently, pushing the pace with his speed into the offensive zone before dishing off to Nolan Collins, whose shot on goal trickled away from Androlewicz and was poked into the back of the net by Shea Van Olm for his first collegiate goal.
SHEA. VAN. OLM.
— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) October 26, 2025#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/4z9NOKYVMH
McKenna’s four-point weekend earned him his first Big Ten weekly honor, being named the Big Ten’s Third Star of the Week on Tuesday. With the start of conference play looming on Thursday, the freshman phenom appears to be settling in at the right time.
“We learn something new about him every week,” Gadowsky said about McKenna on Saturday night. “One week you learn about his backhand, it was unbelievable seeing his shot. We knew he had a good shot; he actually has a great shot. He knows this game inside and out, and I think he’s just going to get better and better.”
“It’s been good,” McKenna said about transitioning to college hockey. “Points haven’t been coming, but we’re getting wins. At the end of the day, I know my line’s working hard even if the puck’s not going in.”
The line with him and Fink, who McKenna has said he’s learned a lot from, has seen five players center the two talented forwards, with Gadowsky experimenting with Ben Schoen, Luke Misa, Dane Dowiak, Reese Laubach, and even Van Olm, a winger by trade.
It still appears to be a work in progress to find the perfect fit, but the line appears to be effective no matter who’s between them. McKenna was complimentary of Misa on Friday night.
“He was good. He’s a hard worker; he does his job. College is a big jump for everyone coming from the CHL I know how he feels, and he played great.”
Who centers the line this weekend will likely be discussed behind the scenes all week. Ohio State’s aptitude in the faceoff circle makes it hard for them to experiment and try out guys who might not fare well taking faceoffs.
Big Ten play begins on the road in Columbus against No. 17 Ohio State at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 30. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.
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