Budding Whitehorse hockey superstar Gavin McKenna made a memorable Western Hockey League debut.

His Medicine Hat Tigers mauled the Lethbridge Hurricanes 9-1 on Sept. 24 in "The Hat." The loss was the worst to start a season in Lethbridge Hurricanes history.

The number one overall Western Hockey League (WHL) pick notched four assists and was named the game's First Star. He also finished +2 on the night while leading his team in points.

McKenna's father, Willy and mom Krystal, along with a group of friends and relatives attended the game.

"It went really well," said Willy McKenna. "I don't think it could have gone any better than the way it did. Obviously, if he would have scored, that would have kind of topped it off but yeah, he had a good night and he's definitely getting a lot of attention these days, that's for sure."

The elder McKenna agreed that four assists in his son's first game was a big accomplishment.

"Yeah, and they were all primary assists and … his ice time was quite limited, so even more kudos to him for putting up those numbers with the limited ice he got."

The young McKenna, 14, didn't only play on one line.

"They kind of had him all over," recalled his father. "They had him listed as the 13th forward so they would just throw him out on the power play and stick him in with the other lines here and there, so he wasn't with any one line. He was just kind of all over the place, really.

"I think the coach just wanted to make sure he was safe out there, right? Like, Lethbridge has a lot of big guys. Being the first overall pick, they might have been gunning for him – who knows? But it seemed like (Coach) Willie (Desjardins) was kind of putting him in situations that were safe and he had an opportunity for success."

McKenna said his son primarily played on the power play.

"He was on the second power play unit, primarily … between the nine minutes of ice time he had, was probably half power play, half five on five."

McKenna said it was "really cool" seeing his son out on the ice for the first time.

"It was neat … he did a rookie lap where they just let him go out and (do) a couple laps to start the warmup and that was cool. And then obviously, just being in a WHL rink, where they got the (Jumbotron) and then all the graphics that go around the rink and by the seating. It's just a whole different level … seeing him be a part of that was really, really cool."

Of course, it was great for McKenna to have his own cheering section.

"We had a little cheering section, 13 of us," said McKenna's father.

"They all loved it. We were all cheering for Gavin. I'm guessing we were probably the loudest section in the arena when he got his points, and also when he got called out for First Star. It was good. Everybody had a great time. It was memorable, that's for sure."

Not surprisingly, his mom Krystal was thrilled to see her son play in the "Dub" for the first time.

"Absolutely," said Willy McKenna. "She was … especially when he got his first assist, which was a nice assist. I think it put the team up 2-1 and all the family was super happy when he did that; kind of got the monkey off the back."

McKenna looked pretty good in the highlights.

"He did," agreed his father."He kind of showed everybody that he can likely play in this league. Well, you know his coach has already said that but really, if he was old enough, he'd be on the team full-time. You see it on Twitter and YouTube. There's a website called E-Prospects where Gavin was the second-most viewed person over the last week. He's getting a lot of media attention now."

Of course, the young star enjoyed his memorable night.

"Absolutely, "said his dad. "He said it was the best night of his career so far, so I think that kind of says it all there. It'll do so much for his confidence moving forward too, knowing that he can do what he just did on that Saturday night, so it's all good for him, for sure."

The young phenom feels like he belongs in the league now.

"He does and it wasn't just that game," related Willy McKenna. "The coaches have made him feel at home, his teammates have made him feel at home, but going out and having a game and having success, I guess that really tops it off."

It was definitely a good night from Gavin McKenna's point of view.

"It was awesome," he said. "Unreal experience. From the crowd to just the game itself it was amazing.

"Obviously a pretty successful night and I got to see my family as well, so it was definitely awesome for sure."

McKenna described his scoring exploits.

"The first one, it was on the power play. I brought it out in front of the net and passed it to a teammate and he scored.

"My second one, I just came down the right side and I just tried to pass it and it didn't go through and I kind of like poke-checked it back to my teammate and he ended up turning around and shooting the puck at the net and he scored.

"My third one, I got it on the power play, again on the right side, kind of faked a shot and then passed down low to my teammate, who tipped it into the net.

"My fourth one, I got it on the right side again and dragged it up to the slot and shot it. The goalie saved it and it bounced out to my teammate, who scored on the rebound."

The third assist, especially, illustrated what exceptional vision McKenna has, as he faked a shot and in one motion, passed it to his teammate at the side of the Lethbridge net for a sweet tip-in. All of McKenna's highlights from that game can be viewed on YouTube by searching using his full name.

McKenna said it was great to set up his "roommate", Reid Andresen, for his first WHL point. Andresen and McKenna live with the same billet family in "The Hat."

"It was definitely a cool experience. He's a great guy and I love living with him, so it was definitely one of the coolest things about that game was setting up my roommate, for sure. We talked about it quite a bit that night."

McKenna said he didn't expect to do that well in his first game.

"In my heart I knew I was gonna do good but I didn't know I was going to do that well."

For the young phenom, being awarded the game's First Star was special.

"Yeah, it was really cool for the first game, my parents there watching – it was an amazing experience," recalled McKenna. "They were all so proud of me."

After the game, the celebration was on, albeit a low-key one.

"We just ordered pizza and the next morning went for breakfast," related McKenna.

McKenna was tied in WHL scoring with none other than potential generational superstar Connor Bedard after the first weekend of the season. Bedard took two games to tally four points.

"Yeah, that was pretty cool," said McKenna. "Me and him, we've talked before … he's my cousin through marriage, so it's a pretty cool thing. I'll text him every once in a while. He's a great guy. It's really cool that I was able to have that stat line.

"He's definitely a great role model for a lot of kids, including myself."

As far as playing against the potential generational talent, who stars for the Regina Pats, "that could be a possibility," said McKenna. "It would be really cool to experience that."

As for when he'll play his next WHL game, "I'm not 100 per cent sure," said McKenna. "I think the next game I will play is against Moose Jaw at home."

Medicine Hat plays Moose Jaw on Nov. 11 at Co-op Place in "The Hat."

"It's not for sure. That's just what I've been told," he added.

When asked if he was feeling any extra pressure to perform after such a successful debut, McKenna responded "No, not really. Obviously, there will be more of a spotlight on me now but I'm gonna do my best not to let that pressure get to me."

In the meantime, starting this week, Mckenna is playing with the South Alberta Hockey Academy in Medicine Hat.

"I just had my first practice with them yesterday and it went well. I think we're gonna have a strong team this year. We play two games this weekend against Prairie Hockey Academy and Pilot Mound, which should be good games, so looking forward to those as well."

When it comes to adjusting to playing at a lower level than the WHL, McKenna is taking a mature approach.

"It would be pretty easy to let playing with the Tigers go to my head, so I'm going to do my best to not let that happen. It'll be cool. Obviously, getting to play with guys my age, it should kind of teach me how to become a leader, which will obviously be good as well."