McKenna's first NHL goal helps Leafs rally past Predators in OT

Gavin McKenna's first NHL goal helped the Toronto Maple Leafs recover from a 3-0 deficit before Auston Matthews completed a 5-4 overtime win against Nashville at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday, Oct. 6.

Matthews scored at 4:46 of overtime on a pass from William Nylander. He also assisted on three Toronto goals in regulation. The Maple Leafs improved to 2-2-0, while the Predators moved to 1-1-1.

McKenna, the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, earned his first NHL point by assisting on John Tavares' goal at 4:56 of the second period. The 18-year-old then scored his first goal at 14:31, taking Matthews' pass and beating Juuse Saros before celebrating on one knee.

NHL EDGE tracking put the projected goal rate on McKenna's first goal at 2.61 per cent, from 25.28 feet out. He finished with six shot attempts against Nashville after five across his first three games. His shot attempt differential at 5-on-5 improved to plus-6 in Tuesday's game after a combined minus-18 in the previous three.

Nashville had built its lead with Steven Stamkos' first-period power-play goal and two goals by Nils Hoglander. After Tavares got Toronto on the board, Nylander scored on the power play at 6:58 of the second. Stamkos scored again at 13:30, but McKenna answered 61 seconds later to leave Toronto trailing 4-3.

Jack Roslovic tied the game at 8:54 of the third period. Nylander finished with a goal and two assists, Roslovic had a goal and an assist, and Filip Forsberg contributed two assists for Nashville. Anthony Stolarz made 21 saves for Toronto; Saros stopped 32 shots.

McKenna, from Whitehorse, entered his fourth NHL game without a point. Through his first three games, he had three shots on goal, a minus-3 rating and an average of 14:32 of ice time.

Through four games, McKenna's 53.1 per cent offensive zone start rate at 5-on-5 ranked in the 93rd percentile among forwards, according to NHL EDGE. He averaged 2:16 per game on the power play, fourth among rookie forwards, and had played mostly with Nylander and Tavares at 5-on-5. His 50 speed bursts of at least 18 mph were tied for 13th in the NHL and level with Kirill Marchenko for Toronto's lead; his top speed was 21.64 mph.