NationTalk: Gavin McKenna, star forward of the Medicine Hat Tigers and a junior hockey sensation, has won an award that he says has special meaning to him.

McKenna, 16, was named the winner of the 2024 APTN Bryan Trottier Most Valuable Player Award during a Hockey Night in Canada in Cree broadcast Saturday.

“It’s a super cool feeling, you know, being indigenous and getting that recognition,” McKenna said in a statement released Monday.

“I’m super proud of who I am and my background,” he added.

“It’s an award that is pretty big, and it’s something that you don’t just get because of your hockey talent, it’s also stuff within the community. When I go home, I try and help my community as much as I can.”

McKenna, a member of Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation, is the first junior hockey player to earn the award.

Gavin McKenna won the 2024 APTN Bryan Trottier Most Valuable Player Award. (Courtesy: Medicine Hat Tigers)

The Tigers star is coming off a sensational season that saw him finish his rookie campaign with 34 goals and 63 assists for 97 points in 61 games.

When McKenna isn’t on the ice, he says he feels most at home connecting with nature in his hometown of Whitehorse, Yukon, according to a Tigers’ news release.

“Being out in nature and stuff, you know, I hunt and fish,” McKenna added. 

“It’s all the traditions that the Indigenous peoples have and, you know, being a part of that was super cool growing up.”

by Eli J. Ridder | @EliRidder