A handful of top prospects will have an opportunity to make their case for a spot on the Senators’ main training camp and opening roster throughout September, beginning with rookie camp and the Prospect Challenge in early September.
The Prospect Challenge will provide the first look for many fans at some of those prospects, who will descend on Gatineau’s Slush Puppie Centre for the two-day showcase on Sept. 12 and 13, competing against teams of prospects from Toronto (Sept. 12, 6 p.m.) and Montreal (Sept. 13, 6 p.m.).
Here’s a look at five prospects to keep an eye on throughout September.
Jaxon Cover
The feel-good story of the 2026 NHL Draft, Cover arrived in Ottawa for development camp in late June following his selection at 32nd overall by the Senators. His rapid progression from inline hockey to the OHL culminated in a 52-point season as a rookie, a figure which led all London Knights forwards.
While Cover is still a raw prospect and will need further development, his skill was on full display at development camp in late June. It will be interesting to see how Cover matches up against players up to three or four years older than him during the Prospect Challenge.
Lucas Beckman
The 2026–27 season will be another unique one for Beckman. After battling mono and being traded at midseason last year from the Baie-Comeau Drakkar to the Chicoutimi Sagueneens, he led the Sagueneens to a QMJHL championship and a berth in the Memorial Cup. This summer, he was traded to the Cape Breton Eagles, who will be his third team in two seasons.
The Sens’ fourth-rounder in 2025 (97th overall), Beckman will also enter the 2026–27 season vying for a spot on Canada’s World Junior Championship team. He was named to the World Junior Summer Showcase team and competed for Canada in August.
Kasper Halttunen
Kasper Halttunen was certainly not a throw-in to June’s William Eklund trade for the Senators. The 6-foot-3 power forward helped the London Knights to back-to-back OHL championships in 2024 and 2025, racking up a ludicrous 32 goals in 35 playoff games across those two runs.
September will spell the first chance for Senators fans to see the Finnish product, who is coming off a successful rookie AHL campaign with the San Jose Barracuda where he scored 16 goals and 35 points in 69 games, adding another goal through two playoff games.
Hoyt Stanley
Hoyt Stanley will arrive at rookie camp this week having just wrapped up a business degree at Cornell University. The mobile, 6-foot-3 defender shoots right and made his pro debut last spring with Belleville, scoring once in six games.
Stanley took home the Jonathan Pitre Award in July — awarded to the hardest-working player in Ottawa Senators development camp each season — and skated with players like Connor Bedard and Macklin Celebrini back home in Vancouver this summer.
Adam Nemec
The younger brother of Flames defenceman Šimon, Adam Nemec benefitted from a midseason move from his native Slovakia to the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves. With the Wolves, he potted 14 goals and 35 points in 31 points, adding two assists in four playoff games.
The Senators drafted Nemec, a 6-0 winger, in the third round of this June’s draft. At the U20 Five Nations tournament in Czechia at the end of August, he finished with two goals and four assists in six games.
Eskild Bakke-Olsen
If Carter Yakemchuk is at the most well-known end of the spectrum of prospects that may appear at the rookie tournament, then Eskild Bakke-Olsen is at the complete other end of the scale. The 24-year-old Norwegian signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the Senators as a free agent in mid-June after helping Team Norway upset Team Canada and win bronze in the 2026 IIHF World Championship in Switzerland.
Bakke-Olsen has three pro seasons in Sweden under his belt, and four more in Norway (he began playing in his domestic pro league as an 18-year-old). With Linköping HC last season in the SHL, he finished second on his team in scoring with 32 points.
You can purchase tickets for the Prospect Challenge here, beginning at just $20.
