Hometown hero Gavin McKenna inspiring next generation in Yukon

Matthew Caley steps gingerly onto the ice at the community rink in Dawson City, Yukon.

The seven year-old is new to hockey.

Caley is wearing a Penn State jersey. The name on the back reads McKenna — his favourite player.

Gavin McKenna of Whitehorse is a citizen of the Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in First Nation and a Canadian hockey phenom. A packed practice on a Saturday morning at the Art and Margaret Fry Recreation Centre arena is proof of his influence.

“For my son's birthday he got a Gavin McKenna jersey and he won't take it off,” said Dan Caley, Matthew’s dad. “I would say almost every child in my son’s class plays hockey, they're all hockey driven, they're all hockey crazy, they all love it. I mean, TH citizen going to the NHL — that's pretty amazing.”

Carrie Mauro is the President of the Dawson City Minor Hockey Association. She says they have seen a spike in the amount of minor hockey interest, particularly in the younger age groups.

“The Tykes and the Pee Wees divisions are really growing,” she said. “They're both over 20 players, which is huge for our small community.”

Gavin Decelle is one of those players. The 11-year-old has big hockey aspirations.

He makes the 1,200-kilometre return trip to Whitehorse just so he can play higher level hockey.

“I find him as a role model because we have the same name,” said Decelle. “I kind of want to play with him when I'm older.”

Taliyah Ewing has a framed jersey of McKenna at her home.

“It's pretty crazy seeing him on TV and all the things he's doing and it's just — it's pretty cool,” said Ewing, who will be playing for Yukon’s under-19 team at the Arctic Winter Games. “I think it's pumped up a lot of people like knowing that they can go do that.”

McKenna has already had an impact on young Yukoners interest in hockey. Now, as part of Team Canada at this year’s IIHF World Junior Championship in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minn., he hopes to have a positive impact on the results for Canada.

‘I wish we could have done more for the fans’

It was a little over a year ago that a dejected McKenna stood in front of a room full of reporters.

He’d just stepped off the ice, his World Juniors were over.

A late goal from Czechia in the quarterfinals eliminated Canada from the tournament. It was another early exit for Canada — fifth place for the second year in a row.

This wasn’t how the Yukon hockey star envisioned his first World Juniors going.

“I wish we could have done more for the fans and the people of Canada,” He said. “It sucks we had to go out this way and you hate to say it but there's always next year.”

Next year is now for McKenna.

The 18-year-old returns to the tournament with high expectations, both for himself and from the greater hockey world.

The expectations aren’t surprising given what McKenna accomplished after last year’s early tournament exit.

He went on a 54-game point streak, led his team to the Memorial Cup final, and was named Canadian Hockey League player of the year.

Then in the summer McKenna signed a million-dollar deal to play NCAA hockey in the United States with Penn State University.

‘The kid is special and he’ll show it’

Guy Gadowsky, head coach at Penn State, says McKenna has impressed him both on and off the ice.

“He’s just a kind, chill, easy-to-get-along-with guy, I mean, he really is,” said Gadowsky. “He very quickly lets you know that he's about the team, not just about himself.”

And while McKenna hasn’t been piling up the points at Penn State like he did in the Western Hockey League, Gadowsky is still expecting big things at this year’s World Juniors.

“Sky's the limit, whatever the coaching staff needs and wants he's going to provide. I will tell you that he has vision unlike anyone I've ever seen before,” he said. “He's going to do extremely well, I mean just look out, the kid is special and he'll show it.”

Team Canada's gold medal pursuit begins on Boxing Day against Czechia.

In a year full of change for McKenna, he’s hoping to change Canada’s outcome at the tournament much like he’s changed the way young Yukoners now view themselves as part of Team Canada.