BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — General manager John Chayka and the Toronto Maple Leafs are on the clock in having the No. 1 pick in the NHL draft on Friday night, and with Penn State forward Gavin McKenna regarded as the top prospect.
For the newly hired Chayka, the selection provides him the next opportunity to help reshape one of the NHL’s marquee franchises, which suddenly is in transition following a last-place finish in the Atlantic Division. Chayka already has hired a new coach in Jim Hiller and last week acquired defenseman Darren Raddysh in a sign-and-trade deal with Tampa Bay.
Now it’s a matter of restocking the Maple Leafs' youth in the same downtown Buffalo arena where Toronto selected star Auston Matthews with the first pick in the 2016 draft.
McKenna is a prolific play-making right winger, who is from Whitehorse, Yukon. Among the other top prospects are Sweden left winger Ivar Stenberg, center Caleb Malhotra and a host of defensemen: Alberts Smits of Latvia, North Dakota’s Keaton Verhoeff and Chase Reid, the top-ranked U.S.-born prospect.
Barring trades, rounding out the top five selections are San Jose at No. 2, followed by Vancouver, Buffalo and the New York Rangers.
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL
FILE - Penn State forward Gavin McKenna (72) skates during an NCAA hockey regional game against Minnesota Duluth, March 27, 2026 in Albany, N.Y. (AP Photo/Vera Nieuwenhuis, File)
FILE - New Toronto Maple Leafs General Manager John Chayka speaks during a scrum following a news conference in Toronto, May 4, 2026. (Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — Carlos Mendoza was fired as manager of the underperforming New York Mets on Friday and replaced by Andy Green.
New York is 34-47 at the season's midpoint following a six-game losing streak, 15 games behind NL East-leading Atlanta and 9 1/2 games back of the NL’s last wild-card berth.
Mets owner Steve Cohen had high expectations for a team without a World Series title since 1986. New York opened the season with baseball’s highest payroll at $358 million and was projected to pay an additional $124 million in luxury tax.
“Our commitment to bringing our fans a championship-caliber team has not changed,” Cohen said in a statement. “There is no sugar-coating it: This season has been a disappointment and our fans deserve better than what we’ve delivered.”
Slowed by injuries to Francisco Lindor, Marcus Semien, Luis Robert Jr., Clay Holmes and Jorge Polanco, the Mets traded pitcher David Peterson to the Chicago Cubs on Thursday and could pivot to a selloff and retooling for the future.
Mendoza spent 15 seasons working for the Yankees, the last four as bench coach, before the Mets hired him to replace Buck Showalter after the 2023 season. While New York advanced to the NL Championship Series in 2024, it failed to reach the playoffs last year and is among the sport's biggest disappointments this season
Since starting last year 45-25, the Mets are 72-101. That left the team with a 206-199 record under Mendoza, who was in the final guaranteed season of a three-year contract. He was hired by the Mets a month after David Stearns joined New York as president of baseball operations.
After signing Juan Soto to a record $765 million, 15-year contract ahead of the 2025 season, Stearns made major roster changes last offseason. He allowed Pete Alonso to leave as a free agent and traded Brandon Nimmo, while bringing in Semien and Bo Bichette.
New York had a 12-game losing streak in April, its longest since 2002, and made six errors in the nightcap of Wednesday's doubleheader loss to the Chicago Cubs, their most in a game since 2014.
“Carlos has led the organization with passion and grace and is beloved by everyone who works with him on a daily basis,” Stearns said in a statement. “Carlos’ impact on our players, staff, and culture over the last three seasons has been transformative. Unfortunately, we know we are falling short and change is necessary to move forward.”
Green, a former major league infielder, joined the Mets in 2023 as senior vice president of baseball development and was given the title of interim manager for the rest of the season. He managed San Diego to a 274-366 record from 2016-19, finishing with sub-.500 records in all four seasons.
Green played four games for the Mets in 2009, his final big league appearances as a player. He became the fourth manager since Cohen bought the team from the Wilpon and Katz families after the 2020 season, following Luis Rojas, Showalter and Mendoza.
Mendoza is the third manager to lose his job since the season started. Boston's Alex Cora was replaced by Chad Tracy and Philadelphia's Rob Thomson by Don Mattingly.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza (64) returns to the dugout after a pitching change during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Thursday, June 25, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza center, looks out from the dugout during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
