Cayman's NHL Dream
Ottawa Senators Select Jaxon Cover 32nd Overall in 2026 NHL Draft, Unearthing Unique Talent
The Ottawa Senators closed out the first round of the 2026 NHL Draft by selecting Jaxon Cover 32nd overall — a forward who grew up in the Cayman Islands and did not touch the ice until he was 12 years old, according to Ottawa Citizen. Cover, who stands 6'2" and weighs 185 pounds, is believed to be the first player born and raised in the Cayman Islands — a nation with zero ice rinks — ever drafted into the NHL, Ottawa Sun reported.
Cover posted 52 points in 67 games for the London Knights this season. He wept at the draft table after his name was called. "If you told me I'd be here even two years ago, I wouldn't believe you," Cover said. "I'm really proud of myself just seeing how far I've come."
From Roller Hockey in the Caribbean to Round One
Cover was born in Miami on February 13, 2008, and grew up on Grand Cayman, where ice hockey does not exist. He played roller hockey at King's Sports Centre and competed in the North American Roller Hockey Championships. When COVID hit in 2020, his family moved to Aurora, Ontario, and he enrolled at St. Andrew's College, according to Calgary Herald.
He played his first ice hockey season at the U14 AA level for the Aurora Tigers. He openly admitted he did not know the rules of icing or offsides during his first tryouts. The London Knights still drafted him 64th overall — in the fourth round of the OHL Priority Selection — in April 2024, according to Ottawa Sun.
NHL Scouts Saw a Player Impossible to Ignore
Dan Marr, Director of NHL Central Scouting, ranked Cover 29th among North American skaters. He praised Cover's rapid rise all season. "Every game this year, he made you notice him," Marr said. "He might have been a hidden secret going into the season. He's not now." Analysts credit his roller hockey background for giving him elite hand-eye coordination and a shifty skating style, according to Ottawa Citizen.
Cover also earned high marks from Elite Prospects, which ranked him 23rd, and TSN's Craig Button, who placed him 30th. The Senators believe his offensive ceiling is still wide open. Because he has only played five years of ice hockey, scouts argue his development curve is steeper — and longer — than most players his age.
Critics Call the Pick a Reach at 32nd Overall
Not everyone agreed with Ottawa's choice. Daily Faceoff analyst Steven Ellis ranked Cover 60th overall and called the pick a "reach." Sportsnet's Jason Bukala ranked him even lower, at 63rd. Both argued the Senators could have grabbed Cover in the mid-second round — somewhere between picks 40 and 50 — and gotten equal value, according to Ottawa Sun.
Critics point to Cover's defensive awareness as still raw. His 52 points are solid but not "mind-boggling" for a late first-round pick. Some analytics writers questioned whether GM Steve Staios left value on the board by not trading down. The Senators also selected Jonas Lagerberg at 25th overall, giving Ottawa two high-ceiling forwards in Round 1.
A Pick With Roots in Ottawa's Darkest Trade
The 32nd pick carries extra history. Ottawa Sun noted that the selection was restored to the Senators as a penalty to the Vegas Golden Knights for the botched Evgenii Dadonov trade in 2022. Ottawa lost Dadonov and got the pick back as part of the settlement. The team used that compensatory asset to land Cover.
Cover plans to spend at least one more season with the London Knights before heading to Penn State University, where he committed to play NCAA hockey starting in 2027-28. His selection also extended London's world-record streak of 58 consecutive years with at least one player drafted into the NHL, according to Brantford Expositor.
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