Jet Kwajah signs with Brantford after strong USHL development with Madison

Jet Kwajah turned a strong USHL run with the Madison Capitols into an OHL opportunity, and the numbers explain why Brantford moved fast. The Bulldogs officially signed the 6-foot? defenseman on June 22 after first acquiring his playing rights from the Owen Sound Attack in a June 2 trade that also sent goaltender Ryerson Leenders the other way.

Kwajah’s USHL line gave Madison a legitimate puck-moving defenseman and gave NHL scouts a reason to keep him on the radar. In 2024-25, his rookie season produced 16 points in 41 games, including seven goals, 10 assists, a plus-4 rating, one game-winning goal, six penalty minutes and two power-play goals. He also battled injuries early, which makes the production look even better, not worse. The USHL ranked him second among rookie defensemen in points per game among players with at least 30 games played, and third overall in rookie-defenseman scoring.

He did not stop there. In 2025-26, Kwajah nearly doubled his output, finishing with 7 goals and 20 assists for 27 points in 55 games. That kind of jump matters for a young defenseman because it signals more than raw skill. It shows he can handle heavier minutes, keep generating offense and keep moving up a scout’s board. NHL Central Scouting did exactly that, listing him in its Midterm Rankings in January before including him in the final 2026 draft rankings in April.

Brantford’s interest also says plenty about the development market around USHL-linked talent. The OHL’s modernized Standard Player’s Agreement, which took effect for the 2025-26 season, keeps education benefits in the mix and makes a CHL route harder to dismiss for players weighing their next step. Kwajah already had a college commitment on the board, too, after Madison announced in September 2024 that he had committed to Penn State University. Now he holds that commitment while moving to Brantford, a reminder that high-end junior players are sorting through more than one credible path.

For USHL fans, the takeaway is simple: Madison developed a defenseman who went from tendered newcomer in March 2024 to All-USHL Rookie First Team selection, then to a Brantford signing and an NHL draft candidate. Kwajah, born March 13, 2008, in Hamilton, Ontario, leaves the USHL with a resume that will make every other blue-liner in the league easier to scout, and every recruiting battle a little more aggressive.