McTavish played minor ice hockey for the Pembroke Lumber Kings, where he was coached by his father, Dale McTavish, who also owned the team. He was selected fifth overall in the 2019 OHL Priorityy Selection by the Peterborough Petes, the same junior team his father played for.[1] In the 2019–20 season, he finished second among under-17 players in goals before the COVID-19 pandemic shut the season down. The following season, with the 2020–21 OHL season suspended due to the pandemic, McTavish returned to Switzerland, though he was unable to get a work visa until he turned 18 years old, eventually joining second division side EHC Olten on January 29, 2021,[2] where he would play 13 games before returning home to play in the under-18 World Championships, where he served as captain and scored eleven points in seven games as Canada won the gold medal.[3][4]
McTavish was selected third overall by the Anaheim Ducks in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.[5] He signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Ducks on August 13, 2021.[6] He was initially scheduled to not play in the team's opening day game against the Winnipeg Jets but was added to the lineup just hours before the contest. In his NHL debut, McTavish scored his first career goal and recorded an assist in a 4–1 win. At 18 years, 256 days old, he surpassed Oleg Tverdovsky as the youngest Duck to score a goal.[7] McTavish skated in three games before a lower-body injury forced him out of the lineup. He was assigned to the Ducks' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the San Diego Gulls, on a conditioning loan on October 28.[8] He recorded two points in three games for the Gulls while with the club. McTavish finished with two goals and one assist in nine games overall for the Ducks before being re-assigned to the Petes on November 20. With not having exceeded the nine-game mark, the Ducks did not burn a year off of McTavish's entry-level contract.[9] McTavish appeared in five games with the Petes, posting six goals and seven points before he was traded to contending club, the Hamilton Bulldogs, in exchange for two prospects and six draft selections on January 9, 2022.[10]
McTavish made his international debut with Canada under-18 team at the 2021 World under-18 Championships. He tallied five goals and six assists in seven games, while Team Canada won the gold medal. Later in the year he was invited to join the roster for the Canada junior team in advance of the 2022 World Junior Championships.[11] However, the tournament was cancelled after Canada had played two games, as a result of the spread of the Omicron variant.[12] Shortly afterward, McTavish was selected to play for Canada senior team at the 2022 Winter Olympics, the NHL having declined to allow its players to take part.[13][14][15] He was part of the team's first line alongside veteran Eric Staal and AHLer Josh Ho-Sang, but the Canadian team struggled in the tournament and was eliminated in quarterfinals.[16] When the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) revived the cancelled 2022 World Junior Championships in August 2022, McTavish was again on the roster, and this time was named captain of the team in the absence of Kaiden Guhle.[17] In an August 11 group stage game against Slovakia junior team, McTavish scored four goals as part of an 11–1 victory, tying a record for most goals scored by a Canadian player in a single World Junior Championships game.[18] Canada advanced to the gold medal game against Finland junior team, where McTavish had his most significant moment of the tournament in overtime, using his stick to knock Finnish defenceman Topi Niemelä's potential game-winning shot out of midair onto the goal line, preventing a loss. Dubbed "the McTavish Miracle,"[19] it was considered an exceptionally skilled defensive play, and facilitated Canada's victory minutes later.[20][21] McTavish was named the tournament MVP and one of Canada's three best players.[22]
Personal life
McTavish was born in Switzerland while his father, Dale, was playing for SC Rapperswil-Jona. He first began playing ice hockey in Zug before the family returned to Canada when Mason was eight years old following Dale's retirement. The family settled in Carp, Ontario. He has one older brother, Darian.[4] His father is currently a scout in the Ottawa Senators organization.[23]
