To no one’s surprise, local Whitehorse hockey phenom Gavin McKenna has been named to the roster of the Under-18 (U18) 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup team. 

To most hockey observers, it would have been a huge shock if he had been left off the team. 

The roster was announced Tuesday by Hockey Canada. 

Two goaltenders, seven defensemen and 13 forwards were named to the team. 

“I’m excited,” said the 16-year-old McKenna before the selection camp, which took place at the WinSport Event Centre in Calgary from July 27-30. “It’s always an honour to have a chance to represent your country.” 

This is the third time McKenna will be representing Canada at an international level.

The roster includes five players who won gold at the 2024 IIHF U18 World Championship in Finland in May: McKenna, Caleb Desnoyers, Reese Hamilton, Jack Ivankovic, and Matthew Schaefer.

McKenna set a record for points by a Canadian with 10 goals and 10 assists for 20 points during that tourney. 

He sparked Team Canada to the gold medal win with a hat trick and an assist in the final against the U.S. 

McKenna was named one of the three best players of the tournament for Team Canada, along with his linemate Porter Martone and goaltender Carter George. 

Team Canada also includes seventeen players that suited up at the 2023 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in Charlottetown, P.E.I., including nine who won gold with the Canada White team. 

McKenna was on the Canada Red team that finished fifth at that tournament. 

Donning the Canada sweater for the first time, McKenna totalled five goals and three assists in seven games in the tournament. 

He finished fifth among goal scorers and sixth in overall scoring. 

In the fifth-place game against Finland, McKenna scored both of Canada’s goals in regulation and added another  snipe in the shootout won by Canada. 

“I’m excited to get the chance to play with some familiar faces,” related McKenna. 

McKenna was the first Yukoner to be chosen first overall in the Western Hockey League (WHL) draft, in 2022, by the Medicine Hat Tigers. 

He was also named WHL 2023-24 Rookie of the Year.

McKenna, a member of the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation, is projected by some hockey analysts as a potential number one overall pick in the 2026 NHL entry draft. 

According to the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup website, it is the only best-on-best competition at the U18 level. 

Canada has won 24 of the 32 gold medals awarded in the tournament since 1991. 

The 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup takes place in Edmonton Aug. 5-10. 

Dave Brown, the U18 lead for the Program of Excellence management group, helped select the squad. 

“This is a group of accomplished athletes that have earned this opportunity to represent their country and defend a gold medal,” said Brown. 

“The opportunity to play for Canada on home ice isn’t something that happens often, and we’re excited for this group and what lies ahead.”

Before the tournament, Team Canada will take on Slovakia on Aug. 1 at 6 p.m. Yukon time at Bill Hunter Arena, and Czechia on Aug. 3 at 6 p.m. Yukon time at the Downtown Community Arena.

Canada opens the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup against Switzerland on Aug. 5 at 6:30 p.m. local time. 

It will also face Slovakia and Sweden in the preliminary round before the tournament concludes with the medal games on Aug. 10.

TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will broadcast all games from Edmonton; check local listings for more details.

– With files from Hockey Canada