Justin Bieber crashed this year's NHL Draft, taking the stage at KeyBank Center in Buffalo on Friday night (June 26) to announce the Toronto Maple Leafs' pick.
The pop star, who’s a diehard fan of the Maple Leafs, surprised hockey fans when he came onto the stage and announced that the team had selected Gavin McKenna with the first overall pick.
"Mr. McKenna, we would like to draft you to the Toronto Maple Leafs," Bieber said, reading the selection to the crowd.
Born in Whitehorse, Yukon, when McKenna came up to the stage wearing his new Leafs jersey, Bieber offered one more line: "Looks good on you, baby." The moment was made even more fitting with McKenna's walk-up music: Bieber's own song, "Yukon.”
The Penn State forward was visibly overwhelmed, delivering an on-stage speech about the surreal nature of the night. "This is nuts. Obviously, I just want to start by thanking my family. I love you guys, I wouldn't be here without you guys," he said. "For all the Yukoners at home, that song is for you. Thanks, Justin. I'm so grateful, I've got no words right now."
"This isn't what I imagined when I was a young kid," McKenna added. "This is so much better. It's a special moment. One I'll remember for the rest of my life."
Bieber, equally caught up in the occasion, said: "Being here, it's a dream, bro. And I know this guy's gonna kill it."
McKenna is the highest-drafted player ever to come from the Yukon Territory and only the second Yukon-born player taken in the first round, following Dylan Cozens, who went No. 7 to Buffalo in 2019. He is also the fifth NCAA men's hockey player chosen first overall in NHL Draft history, and the first since Macklin Celebrini of Boston University in 2024.
Maple Leafs GM John Chayka called the pick an easy one. "Gavin is an exceptional young man with tremendous talent and character," according to NHL.com.
"I know how exciting this is for you and your family, and what an incredible honor it is," Matthews said. "Congratulations, we're just as excited to have you join the Maple Leafs, and cannot wait to get started. You're coming to a franchise with an amazing history and fanbase and we're all working to write the next great chapter together, and you're going to be a very important part of that."
