CHL Storylines: Medicine Hat riding McKenna magic in WHL playoffs

Medicine Hat Tigers phenom Gavin McKenna is proving why he is considered the best player in junior hockey.

The 6-foot winger finished the season on a 40-game point streak that saw him record 32 goals and 100 points during that span. He continued his pace in the playoffs, recording three goals and 17 points in his team’s five-game series win over the Swift Current Broncos.

McKenna’s dominance has been so strong that he also has a 14-game streak of having multi-point games and has only been held pointless three times this season. He finished the regular season with 41 goals and 129 points, three points behind Spokane Chiefs forward Andrew Cristall for the league lead. 

“This accomplishment is massively impressive,” said TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button. “I don’t care what level you’re at, if you put up a 45-game point streak it’s impressive. It’s not like he’s slipped along with a point here or a point there. He has 117 points in 45 games, it’s unbelievable.” 

McKenna has accomplished a lot in his two-plus seasons in the WHL, with the main goal set of representing the league at this year’s Memorial Cup tournament in Rimouski, Que. 

Medicine Hat finished the regular season with a 48-12-8 record for the WHL’s second-best record and ended the season on a 10-game winning streak. 

They are taking on the Prince Albert Raiders in the second round, who defeated the Edmonton Oil Kings in a close seven-game series. Prince Albert finished the season with a 39-23-6 record to win the East Division and finish second in the Eastern Conference. 

Button believes the Raiders will need more than just talent or a plan in order to contain McKenna.

“I don’t know how you stop him. He’s literally unstoppable,” said Button. “You almost have to count on Lady Luck. You hope he hits a post, hits the knob of a stick, or hopes a puck hits a skate in front of an empty net so it doesn’t go in.”

The Tigers are not just the “McKenna Show” with substantial amount of offensive depth surrounding him to go along with a strong defence and solid goaltending.

Medicine Hat captain Oasiz Wiesblatt has been a force up the middle of the ice, finishing the season fifth in league scoring with 36 goals and 103 points. Forward Hunter St. Martin contributed secondary scoring with 39 goals and 59 points, while winger Ryder Ritchie added 29 goals and 61 points.

The Tigers completely remade their blueline from last season, bringing in Bryce Pickford and Jonas Woo from the Seattle Thunderbirds and Wenatchee Wild, respectively. They also used the 2024 CHL Import Draft to bring in Finnish defencemen Veeti Vaisanen and Niilopekka Muhonen. 

The icing on the cake was acquiring star rearguard Tanner Molendyk from the Saskatoon Blades to lead the defence corps into the playoffs.

“Medicine Hat is a wagon,” said Button. “Their blueline is outstanding, their forward group is outstanding, and their goaltending is outstanding. When you watch them play, they’re really well coached and they have a superstar.

“I think they’re the best team in the WHL, and it would be a monumental upset for anyone to beat Medicine Hat.” 

Tigers goaltender Harrison Meneghin was another trade deadline acquisition in an attempt to load up for this year’s playoff run, acquiring him from the Lethbridge Hurricanes.

The 6-foot-4 netminder finished the season with a 23-10-2 record and finished third in the WHL with a 2.58 goals-against average to go along with a .900 save percentage. 

Meneghin had an emotional end to the season after his father unexpectedly died in the middle of Medicine Hat’s 5-2 win over the Calgary Hitmen in the final game of the season. He wasn’t told the news until after the game. 

In the 20-year-old’s first time back in net, he responded by stopping all 21 shots he faced in a 4-0 victory over the Broncos in Game 1 of the playoffs.  

“I’m super proud of him and I know every guy in there is super proud of him,” said Wiesblatt after Game 1. “It shows a lot of really resiliency from him, it’s pretty incredible. There’s not a lot of words to put towards it, guys were crying after seeing him get that win. That was probably the most special thing I’ve ever been a part of.” 

Collision course in the OHL East

The top of the Ontario Hockey League’s Eastern Conference finished so condensed spots one through four were separated by just five points. 

The Brantford Bulldogs took top spot with a 44-19-5 record thanks to a late charge at the end of the season that saw them win 16 of their last 20 games.  

They were chased by the Barrie Colts, Kingston Frontenacs, and Oshawa Generals who all finished the season with 88 points. 

As the first round of the playoffs came to a conclusion on Sunday, those four teams are now set to take on each other for the right to play in the Eastern Conference Championship Series. 

Brantford is taking on last year’s Eastern Conference champion Oshawa Generals in the first of the two matchups. 

The Bulldogs are full of firepower up front led by Chicago Blackhawks prospect Nick Lardis and Jake O’Brien, who is a top prospect in this year’s NHL Draft.

Lardis was the top goal scorer in the CHL this season, recording 71 goals and 117 points. He continued his scoring touch in the postseason with seven goals and nine points in Brantford’s five-game series win over the North Bay Battalion. 

O’Brien finished third on the team with 32 goals and 98 points but finished the season with points in 21 of his last 22 games and registering multipoint nights in 12 of them. 

The 6-foot-2 centre had two goals and four points in the five-game series win over the Battalion. He is listed at No. 9 on TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie’s mid-season rankings and ranked No. 10 on Button’s most recent list. 

“Brantford’s firepower gives them the biggest advantage,” said Button. “They can score at rates that are pretty significant. Lardis is the type of player who only needs one shot and that’s something Oshawa doesn’t have. They’re deep and they have a good coach in Jay McKee and great goaltending in Ryerson Leenders.” 

Oshawa is coming into the second round after dispatching the Brampton Steelheads in six games in Round 1.  

Their core from last year’s run to the OHL Championship Series has remained the same, with Beckett Sennecke, Luca Marrelli, Calum Ritchie, and Ben Danford all returning.

They also brought in winger Colby Barlow from the Owen Sound Attack at the beginning of the season and acquired defenceman Andrew Gibson from the Soo Greyhounds to shore up the back end. 

“The experience Oshawa had last year is going to help them,” said Button. “They got to the league final, which is their goal again this year and made some moves to get to that point. 

“They tried to get players that made them a bit heavier and stiffer defensively. Those become really important for a team that wants to go deep.”

Sennecke led the way offensively this season, recording 36 goals and 86 points in 56 games while Marrelli was fourth among OHL defencemen in scoring with 19 goals and 74 points.

Ritchie began the season with the Colorado Avalanche, but once he returned to the OHL, he was vital for the Generals, putting up 15 goals and 70 points in 47 games. 

“They have high-end talent, but they need some of the other guys to push their game along in order to help them. They can’t just rely on the core guys like Ritchie, Sennecke, Marrelli, and Barlow,” Button said. “I’ll be shocked if it’s not Brantford playing the London Knights in the OHL Championship Series. With that said, Oshawa is capable of beating the Bulldogs.” 

The second series in the East features the Barrie Colts taking on the Kingston Frontenacs, who both finished with 88 points to end the season.

Barrie won the Central Division with a 42-22-4 record with 2025 NHL top prospect Kashawn Aitcheson leading the way.

Aitcheson finished tied for the team lead in scoring with 26 goals and 59 points as a defenceman, and added a goal and two points in the Colts’ five-game win over the Niagara IceDogs in the first round.

“If someone asked me who the most competitive player in this year’s draft was, I would say it’s Aitcheson,” said Button. “I don’t know if I’ve ever watched one of his games where he didn’t score a perfect mark as far as his competitiveness. 

“He’s a hard-edge player who’s a fierce penalty killer, fierce defender and is territorial. If you want an edge on him, you’re going to have to earn every bit of space against him.” 

Aitcheson is ranked No. 17 on Button’s most recent draft list and McKenzie listed him at No. 18 in his mid-season rankings.  

The Colts have the ability to be a high-flying offensive team but will have to adjust their game against a Kingston team that tends limit time and space. 

“If Barrie can adjust to a tighter game, they’re going to have a chance to win,” said Button. “If they want play freer against a tight team against Kingston, they’re going to struggle.” 

The Frontenacs defeated the Sudbury Wolves in a four-game sweep in the first round after finishing third in the conference with a 40-20-8 record. 

They are led up front by forwards Jacob Battaglia, Tuomas Uronen, and Cedrick Guindon. Battaglia and Uronen led the team in scoring with 90 points each, while Guindon followed closely behind with 85.

Kingston relied heavily on the power play for offence in the regular season, converting at a 25.6 per cent click. Their special teams struggled in the first round with the power play converting only at 12.5 per cent but were able to dispatch Sudbury without it.

“They don’t score easy, but they play hard as a group,” said Button. “They play hard and grind you but [their ability to create offense] might be a challenge against Barrie. The power play is something that really helped them in the regular season and they’re going to need that.”

QMJHL Series to Watch - Rimouski Oceanic vs. Chicoutimi Saguenéens

The Memorial Cup host Rimouski Oceanic battle the Chicoutimi Saguenéens in a featured series of the second round of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League playoffs. 

This is a matchup that features a Rimouski team loaded up with the sole focus on winning this year as the hosts at the Memorial Cup, going up against an up-and-coming Chicoutimi squad that will be dangerous this year and beyond. 

The Oceanic made two big splashes in the off-season by bringing in last season’s MVP Mathieu Cataford from the Halifax Mooseheads and defenceman Pier-Olivier Roy from the Val d’Or Foreurs to begin their championship quest. 

They doubled down at the trade deadline by acquiring QMJHL leading scorer Jonathan Fauchon from the Blainville-Boisbraind Armada and Washington Capitals prospect Eriks Mateiko from the Saint John Sea Dogs.

“Everything is about this year for Rimouski,” said Button. “They have a good, older team and are automatically in the Memorial Cup.” 

Rimouski finished with the second-best record in the QMJHL at 46-14-4 and easily dispatched the Charlottetown Islanders in the first round of the playoffs. 

The big question mark for the team is the status of defenceman Spencer Gill, who has been out since Feb. 28 with a lower-body injury. 

Gill recorded six goals and 35 points in 51 games this season and is a key factor on their defence. 

“I’m not going to say they vulnerable [without him] but he’s a big pillar on their blueline,” said Button. “The question is if he can get back and play some playoff games or are they just hoping he can come back for the Memorial Cup. When you lose a guy like that, it becomes more difficult to succeed.”

Chicoutimi is a team that is built for the future after using five first-round picks in the past two QMJHL Drafts. 

After finishing sixth in the Eastern Conference last season, the Saguenéens finished third this season with a 36-18-10 record. 

They are led up front by Maxim Massé who recorded 33 goals and 59 points in 47 games this season and added a goal and six points in the first round of the playoffs. 

“Massé is a good player and a real key to that team,” said Button. He plays everywhere and in every situation. 

“He’s one of those players that has a way about him. He’s always been able to raise the level of his game when the challenges get harder and that’s a good quality to have.” 

While Chicoutimi will attempt to give Rimouski everything they have in the second round, the real benefit will be the experience of taking on an Oceanic team that is all in. 

Many of Chicoutimi’s key players will be available to return to the club next season and that experience will be crucial as they build towards the level Rimouski already is at.

“Chicoutimi might see themselves in the way that Rimouski saw themselves last year,” said Button. “They’re a young team that’s going to get playoff experience this year, but it’s going to really help them next season.”