TEMPE, Ariz. — Gavin McKenna had two first-period assists in his Penn State debut, helping the Nittany Lions beat Arizona State, 6-3, on Friday night.
Expected to be the No. 1 pick next year in the NHL draft, the 17-year-old McKenna set up Aiden Fink’s power-play goal with 9:05 left in the first and assisted on Charlie Cerrato’s goal late in the period.
McKenna left the Western Hockey League champion Medicine Hat Tigers to play for Penn State after the NCAA lifted its ban on Canadian Hockey League players.
From Whitehorse, Yukon, McKenna is a member of the Trʼondëk Hwëchʼin First Nation. He was the WHL’s player of the year last season, finishing with 41 goals and 88 assists in 56 regular-season games.
After Arizona State took a 3-2 lead in the second period, Matt DiMarsico had a hat trick in the third for Penn State, the last into an empty net. Cerrato also had a late goal for his fifth point of the night.
