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How Jaxon Cover went from Cayman Islands to Ottawa Senators' 1st-round NHL Draft pick
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- How Jaxon Cover went from Cayman Islands to Ottawa Senators' 1st-round NHL Draft pick
How Jaxon Cover went from Cayman Islands to Ottawa Senators' 1st-round NHL Draft pick originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
Jaxon Cover played roller hockey until he was 13.
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He grew up in the Cayman Islands. It wasn't exactly an ice hockey hotbed.
Despite that, Cover made history on Friday. The Ottawa Senators took him with the No. 32 overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, the last pick of the first round.
He's the first player ever drafted from the Cayman Islands.
MORE: What the Gavin McKenna pick means for the Maple Leafs
How Jaxon Cover made it to NHL's Ottawa Senators
Cover found his way to hockey opportunities with teams like the York Simcoe Express and St. Andrew's College, according to Daily Faceoff .
He played well enough there to earn him a spot in the OHL with the London Knights.
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And in 2025-26 with the Knights, Cover had 52 points in 67 games -- 20 goals and 32 assists.
Cover was born in Miami, Florida, then grew up in the Cayman Islands but can also represent Canada internationally, according to Daily Faceoff.
MORE: Now comes the tricky part for the Canucks and Caleb Malhotra
Where are the Cayman Islands?
The Cayman Islands are a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean Sea.
They're south of Cuba and east of Mexico.
They also have Jamaica not all that far to their west.
It's quite the place to produce a first-round NHL Draft pick.
