Jaxon Cover is a forward for the London Knights of the OHL, taken 32nd overall by the Ottawa Senators in the 2026 NHL Draft. Jaxon Cover grew up on Grand Cayman playing roller hockey and did not play organized ice hockey until he was 13. Cayman Compass and Daily Faceoff both described Jaxon Cover as the first player from the Cayman Islands ever drafted into the NHL.
| Fast facts: Jaxon Cover | |
|---|---|
| Current team | London Knights, OHL, No. 87 |
| Position | Forward. Listed at left wing by the OHL and EliteProspects, at right wing by NHL.com. London moved him to centre in the 2026 preseason |
| Shoots | Left |
| Born | 13 February 2008, Florida, USA |
| Height / weight | 6’1″ (185 cm) / 185 lbs per the OHL, EliteProspects, PuckPedia and The Hockey News. Wikipedia and hockeydb list 6’2″ and 183 lbs |
| Drafted | 2026, first round, 32nd overall, Ottawa Senators |
| Contract status | Unsigned. PuckPedia lists no current contract and a sign-by date of 1 June 2030 |
| Jersey | 87 with London, chosen for Sidney Crosby |
How did Jaxon Cover get from roller hockey in the Cayman Islands to the OHL?
Jaxon Cover started roller hockey on Grand Cayman at the age of 3, in a youth program his father helped start, according to the Senators’ own profile of the family. He played at King’s Sports Center, which Cayman Compass names as the rink where he developed and, at the time, the island’s only rink. In 2016, he was named MVP and fastest inline skater at the North American Roller Hockey Championship while competing in two age divisions, NHL.com reported. He also played the pro division at NARCh, a California tournament, against opponents in their thirties, The Hockey News reported.
His first time on ice came at a summer camp in Toronto when he was 8, and it did not go well.
“One time, I tried to do a roller hockey stop where you twist your ankles. So I kind of just blew a tire and fell over and landed on my back,” Jaxon Cover told The Canadian Press.
In 2020 Jaxon Cover and his older brother were sent to St. Andrew’s College, a private school north of Toronto. He spent his first year there playing soccer and tried out for ice hockey in his second, at 13, at under-14 level. The Hockey News lists Aurora and the York-Simcoe Express among his minor hockey teams. Two things took adjusting: the rules, since he has said he did not know what icing or offside were, and stopping, which roller hockey barely requires.
What are Jaxon Cover’s career stats?
His main seasons, per EliteProspects, which also lists shorter prep school stints:
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | P | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-24 | York Simcoe Express U16 AAA | OMHA U16 | 34 | 16 | 22 | 38 | 18 |
| 2024-25 | St. Andrew’s College | U18 AAA | 55 | 21 | 19 | 40 | 34 |
| 2024-25 | London Knights | OHL | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 2025-26 | London Knights | OHL | 67 | 20 | 32 | 52 | 48 |
Jaxon Cover added 2 goals and 1 assist in five playoff games in 2025-26 and finished the regular season at plus-9. His 52 points came at 0.78 per game, and 32 of them were assists.
Cayman Compass dates Jaxon Cover’s first organized ice hockey season to 2021-22, which makes the 2026 draft the end of his fifth season on ice. NHL.com puts the start later, in his second year at St. Andrew’s, so the count runs to four or five seasons depending on the source.
Where was Jaxon Cover drafted?
Ottawa selected Jaxon Cover with the 32nd pick, the last of the first round, at KeyBank Center in Buffalo on 26 June 2026. NHL Central Scouting had him 45th among North American skaters at its midterm and 29th on the final list, and he interviewed with 25 of the 32 teams. London had taken him 64th overall, in the fourth round of the 2024 OHL Priority Selection, and signed him in early March 2025.
“It’s a great story, but we drafted him because we believe that he’s got ability; we believe that he’s got skill. We believe he’s going to have a chance to be an offensive guy,” Senators head scout Don Boyd said on draft night.
Ryder Cali, who played roller hockey with Jaxon Cover in the Caymans, went 48th overall to Florida the following day, 16 picks later. Our profiles of Gavin McKenna and fellow OHL forward Chase Reid cover the rest of the 2026 first round.
Is Jaxon Cover Canadian or American?
Jaxon Cover is described as all three: American, Canadian and Caymanian. He was born in Florida, moved to the Cayman Islands at one month old according to The Hockey News, and has a father from the Toronto area. EliteProspects lists his nation as Canada and the Cayman Islands, Cayman Compass calls him Caymanian, and Daily Faceoff wrote after the draft that he is eligible to represent Canada and the United States internationally. He has not played for any national team.
What do scouts say about Jaxon Cover?
McKeen’s Hockey graded Jaxon Cover at 54.25 overall future potential in April 2026, with his highest mark for skills at 57.5, skating and hockey sense tied behind at 55 and physicality lowest at 50, praising his processing speed and flagging a lean frame and his reads in the defensive zone. The Hockey Writers compared him to William Horcoff the month before, in a profile that had him ranked from 26th to 57th across public lists.
“His game has really trended in the right direction being a first-year player at the OHL level,” NHL Central Scouting associate director David Gregory said in March 2026.
Jaxon Cover models his game on Tage Thompson and has said he also admires Nikita Kucherov.
What team does Jaxon Cover play for?
Going into 2026-27 Jaxon Cover is back with the London Knights. NHL.com’s first-round signings tracker, updated 4 September 2026, had him down to play for London, and The Hockey News named him among the Knights’ returning top players in its OHL season preview two days later. London moved him from the wing to centre during the 2026 preseason, The Hockey News reported on 5 September 2026. He committed to Penn State in April 2026 and is expected there for 2027-28.
He scored the overtime winner in his first game in a Senators jersey, a 4-3 win over Toronto at the NHL Prospect Challenge in Gatineau on 12 September 2026, and finished the night with three points. The channels and streams for every Senators game are in our guide to how to watch the Ottawa Senators. Ottawa’s first-round defenceman from two drafts earlier is covered in our profile of Carter Yakemchuk.
Does Jaxon Cover have an NHL contract?
No. Jaxon Cover has not signed an entry-level contract with Ottawa. PuckPedia lists no current contract for him, a sign-by date of 1 June 2030 and waiver exemption, and no salary figure has been reported anywhere. Ottawa holds his NHL rights in the meantime.
Who are Jaxon Cover’s parents?
Jaxon Cover’s father is Patrick Cover, who is from the Toronto area and works in banking. His mother is Nanalie Cover, president and CEO of the University College of the Cayman Islands. His older brother Jaedon attends the University of Miami.
“Words can barely describe how proud we are of his achievement, but the work is only starting now,” Patrick Cover told Cayman Compass in July 2026, after the family returned to the island.
How old is Jaxon Cover?
Jaxon Cover was born on 13 February 2008. EliteProspects, PuckPedia and hockeydb all give that date. They differ on the city: EliteProspects has Miami while hockeydb and PuckPedia have Coral Springs, with Florida common to all three.
