In this episode of My Hockey Hero, host Dean Barnes sits down with Alex Huang, star defenceman for the Chicoutimi Saguenéens of the QMJHL and 2025 draft pick of the Nashville Predators. Alex shares his journey as the son of Chinese immigrants growing up in a diverse Montreal suburb, his early love for hockey (starting on orange juice caps), and how the pandemic became a turning point in his development. He reflects on being an offensive defenceman, a trilingual student-athlete with Harvard on the horizon, and a role model for Asian and other racialized kids in hockey. Alex also talks about his team’s Memorial Cup aspirations, the demands of major junior hockey, and offers powerful advice to young players about self-belief, hard work, and carving their own path to the next level. blackhockeycards.com

Born and raised in the Cayman Islands, Jaxon Cover took one of the most unconventional paths to major junior hockey. In this episode of My Hockey Hero, Jackson joins Dean to share how roller hockey on a Caribbean island led him all the way to the London Knights and the Canadian Hockey League (CHL).

Jaxon reflects on:

• Discovering roller hockey at age three and representing the Cayman Islands in travel tournaments across the U.S.
• Moving to Canada at 12, learning ice hockey from scratch at St. Andrew’s College, and his first tryouts with the Aurora Tigers.
• The coaching and mentorship that propelled him to the U16 York Simcoe team and ultimately being drafted in the 4th round of the 2024 OHL Priority Selection.
• His first games and first hat trick in the OHL, the challenge of adapting to the size, speed, and physicality of the CHL, and the importance of teammates and mentors like Ben Wilmot.
• How idols like Sidney Crosby and rising NHL star Macklin Celebrini inspire his work ethic, mindset, and goals for the future.

Jaxon also shares his pregame routines, the mental side of dealing with slumps, and offers heartfelt advice for young players chasing big dreams from unlikely places.

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In this special Black History Month edition of My Hockey Hero, host Dean Barnes sits down with trailblazer John Parris Jr., player, coach, scout, and general manager, to explore what it truly costs to break barriers in hockey and hold the door open for others.

From frozen ponds in rural Windsor, Nova Scotia, to signing with the Montreal Canadiens organization, John reflects on race, resilience, community, and the human connections that shaped his journey through one of the toughest sports in the world.

John Parris Jr. grew up as the only Black family in his town, learning to skate on outdoor ponds and frozen pits before he could comfortably walk. Supported by local community members and his sports-loving father, he rose quickly through youth hockey, often playing above his age group and being named MVP everywhere he went.

John situates his story within a deeper legacy: the Coloured Hockey League and the tightly knit Black communities of Nova Scotia, where hockey was both resistance and self-determination. Rather than waiting for inclusion, Black players formed their own leagues and teams, proving they did not need outside permission to belong in the game.

As he moved into elite levels of hockey, John experienced both the demands of high performance and the importance of solidarity among teammates who protected and supported him on and off the ice. A formative moment came when legendary coach and scout Scotty Bowman visited his family home, offering a clear-eyed, honest conversation about adversity, integrity, and the social realities surrounding the sport.

Despite his talent, John’s playing career was derailed by serious health issues that he initially hid out of fear it would end his opportunities. John Parris Jr. went on to become the first Black elite hockey coach, breaking barriers behind the bench and proving that leadership at the highest levels of the game could look different, and open doors for those who followed.

Throughout the episode, John emphasizes family, community, character, and the idea that once you’ve reached a certain level in sport, you become part of a lifelong family, one that transcends backgrounds and rivalries.

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