Canada’s World Junior staff is excited to see what McKenna will be able to do playing against players closer to his own age.

“I watched him play a couple times this year,” said Mark Hunter, the head of Canada’s WJC management group. “He makes elite passes. He’s an elite playmaker. … You see his brain, how it works and how quick he gets pucks to the net and how he can set up people for open nets.”

He showcased some of that during Canada’s first pre-tournament game, a 2-1 win against Sweden on Dec. 17 that saw McKenna have the primary assist on two goals by Brady Martin (Nashville Predators).

“He put pucks in spots where I can get them,” Martin said. “He’s a really good player so it’s pretty easy to play with him.

“The way he sees the ice and his skating, he’s just all-around elite. His hands, he always makes the right play. If you just get open he’ll find you. It’s pretty easy to play with him.”

But McKenna wants to be more than just an offensive force.

“I expect a lot,” he said. “I expect to be one of the top guys. I want to lead this team. I want to be a leader, I want to show the guys what it takes. Hopefully lead us to a gold medal.”

He’ll have help in that regard, including six players with NHL experience this season: defensemen Harrison Brunicke (Pittsburgh Penguins) and Zayne Parekh (Calgary Flames), and forwards Braeden Cootes (Vancouver Canucks), Jett Luchanko (Flyers), Martin and Misa.

Misa especially should invigorate a Canada offense that scored seven even-strength goals in five games at the 2025 WJC, when Canada was seventh of 10 teams on the power play at 21.1 percent (4-for-19).

He has three points (one goal, two assists) in seven NHL games after leading the CHL last season with 134 points (62 goals, 72 assists) in 65 games with Saginaw of the Ontario Hockey League.

“I think he adds another dynamic offensive player, another guy that can make your special teams [better],” Canada WJC general manager Alan Millar said. “I think Misa adds another element and adds another level in terms of our skill and sense. You want to have details, you want to play with structure, you want to play the right way, you want to keep pucks out of your net. But at the same time, as we found out a year ago, you’ve got to score goals as well.”