Real Weddings: Max and Alexa

Alexa Jesse, a 25-year-old financial investment analyst, first met Max Jones, a 26-year-old NHL player, in 2016, when he was playing for the OHL in London, where she grew up. The two began dating shortly afterward. When Alexa left for university in Kingston and Max moved to California after being drafted to the Anaheim Ducks, the two continued their relationship long-distance until Alexa joined him in October 2021. The couple were engaged during a beachside proposal in August of 2023, followed by a June 2024 wedding at the JW Marriott The Rosseau Muskoka Resort and Spa. Here’s how their celebrations came together.

Max: I’ve been playing hockey for as long as I can remember. I grew up in Michigan but was drafted into the OHL by the London Knights in 2015, when I was 17.

Alexa: I was in my last year of high school when I met Max. Sometime in the fall of 2016, I went to the mall with my mom and saw Max at the Lululemon store. He was there with some teammates. I knew one of them through my high school friends, so I went over to say hi.

Max: I thought Alexa was the most beautiful person I’d ever seen. We chatted a bit in the store, then I got her number through our mutual friend.

Alexa: I thought Max was really cute, and I felt like there could be something there. But I knew I’d be going away for university soon, and I didn’t think it was the right time to get into a relationship. When Max texted and asked me out to dinner a few days later, I told him I’d go—but just as friends.

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Max: We went for sushi and learned more about each other. I found out that Alexa plays soccer, so sports were a shared interest between us. She has two brothers, so she has a tomboyish side, which I liked.

Alexa: It was a good first date. I was smiling from ear to ear the whole time. I could tell there was something special about Max. He left home when he was 15 to play hockey, and I was really impressed by his work ethic and dedication. He seemed mature for his age. I was hesitant to get involved with him—I’d heard that hockey players were trouble—but he was so persistent and sweet. He had a Jeep, which I thought was so cool, and he’d drive me and my friends around. One time, my friends and I really wanted pizza but the restaurant wasn’t delivering, so Max ended up getting pizza for us and dropping it off himself.

Max: On New Year’s Eve in 2016, Alexa hosted a party at her house and invited me. Right at midnight, when the ball dropped, I asked Alexa to be my girlfriend. That’s when we made our relationship official.

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Alexa: We hung out a lot that year, going on more sushi dates and getting ice cream. I ended up getting recruited by Queen’s University to play soccer and was accepted into their commerce program. Max stayed in London, so we did long distance for a few months. Then, by chance, he was traded to another OHL team—the Kingston Frontenacs. I felt like it was fate, a sign that we were meant to be together. In the summer, we’d both go back to London since Max trained there in the off-season.

Max: In 2016, I was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks, and I moved to join them in California in 2017. Alexa and I did long distance for the next three years. It was a lot of texting and FaceTime.

Alexa: I finished university in May of 2021. At first, I thought I’d move down to California after I graduated. But I got into a really good year-long graduate program at Scotiabank and didn’t want to pass up that opportunity. So I moved to Toronto.

Max: In October of 2021, my fourth year playing with the Ducks, we were playing our third game of the season in Calgary, and I tore my pectoral tendon off the bone. It was a season-ending injury.

Alexa: After Max got injured, I saw how difficult that was for him. He was going through a hard time trying to recover and come to terms with his season being over so soon, all while being away from his family. At the same time, Toronto was practically shut down because of Covid. It felt right for me to move and be with him. I was fortunate enough to get hired by a company in California that would sponsor me on a work visa. I moved out to California in November of 2021, into a townhouse that Max rented in Newport Beach.

Max: I’d never had to deal with an injury like that before, so it was definitely a struggle. I felt very isolated. I don’t know what I would have done without Alexa. Being together through my recovery really bonded us and solidified our relationship.

Alexa: I knew that my relationship with Max was the most important thing in my life. I’m grateful that we had the opportunity to grow our careers apart, but it felt like the right time for us to be together. The transition felt very easy. We were already best friends, so there were never any issues, aside from doing some painting and decorating—his place was definitely a hockey player’s house before I came through.

Max: Once I recovered from the injury, I had to go back to Michigan a few months at a time for training, so our long-distance continued.

Alexa: We talked about marriage fairly early on. I remember Max telling me that he wanted to get married when he was 25. He turned 25 in February of 2023. A lot of our friends were getting engaged and married around that time, so around March or April that year, I started asking questions about our own future.

Max: I always knew I would marry Alexa eventually, but I wasn’t as concerned about when it would happen. Once she started asking questions, I figured it was the right time. I told her, “When I propose, you’re going to have no idea. It will be very low key, just the two of us. And I want everything to be a surprise.”

Alexa: I liked the idea of it being a surprise, but I wanted to have a say in the ring. So I sent him photos of the style I liked—an elongated cushion diamond on a thin band.

Max: To throw Alexa off, I told her that I’d propose sometime the year after, in 2024. But, really, I was planning a proposal for the end of that summer. Since I would be away in Michigan for training, I hired a concierge service to help me organize everything. The plan was that I’d take Alexa out for dinner, then we’d stop by Crystal Cove State Park, five minutes from our house, for the proposal. I got home from training three days before the engagement.

Alexa: It was an early dinner. Our reservation was for 5:30 p.m, which Max said was the only time he could get.

Max: Really, it was just so that we could get to Crystal Cove for sunset. I had the ring in my pocket, and when we sat down I realized you could see the ring box through my pants, so I very quickly asked to switch seats with Alexa.

Alexa: On our way home, I was taking a video of the sunset from the car. As we were passing Crystal Cove, Max said, “Why don’t we pull over here and go for a walk?”

Max: I had arranged for a photographer to be hidden at the park, pretending to be a tourist. It was perfect timing—the sun was just coming down. We walked through the park for a few minutes to a spot by the coast, and then I went down on one knee and pulled out the ring.

Alexa: I was in shock. I was just staring at him with this big smile on my face, nodding my head, speechless. He asked me, “Well, are you going to say yes?” I did, and then he immediately jumped up and kissed me. He said he had another surprise for me and led me around the corner, down a hill to the beach.

Max: The planner had set up a beach umbrella and two chairs with champagne, chocolate strawberries and some signs with messages written out on them about how much I loved Alexa. We hung out there for a bit and toasted our engagement.

Alexa: Once we got back home, I tried calling my mom, but she wouldn’t answer. I thought, with the time change, maybe she had gone to bed early. Max said we should go to a rooftop bar across the street to celebrate. Once we got there, everyone jumped out and surprised me—my mom included, plus my childhood best friend. I just started bawling. It felt like the best surprise, especially since Max is usually such a low-key guy. It was so thoughtful that he would put this whole event together. I’m usually the planner in our relationship.

Max: Since she’s the planner, she took the lead on organizing the wedding. Because of the hockey season, we’d only have a three-month window in the summer to get married. We’d either have to do it in the summer of 2024 or wait until 2025.

Alexa: I was excited to get married, so I figured, let’s do it in 2024. Max’s only request was for it to be in a secluded location.

Max: I liked the idea of an intimate celebration. We spend so much of our time in the city. I wanted to get away with our best people. We’d have about 180 guests in total.

Alexa: Muskoka was an easy choice. Max and I had spent summers there while we were living in London, and one of his hockey teammates had a cottage on Lake Joseph. We’d been to the JW Marriott before for drinks and lunch, and we always had a great time there, so we chose it as our venue. I’ve always loved planning events, so I decided to plan the wedding myself, with the help of a coordinator. I knew I wanted something modern, timeless and elegant. The decor would be simple, with touches of black and white. We’d do our ceremony outside by the lake, under a rectangular floral arch, then go inside for dinner and a reception.

Max: I got my tux from Domenico Vacca at Giovanni Clothes in Montreal. He does suits for a lot of guys in the NHL, and I order all my suits from him. He always does a great job. My tux had a satin lapel and a stripe down the pant leg to match, and I had a vest in a black Jacquard pattern. The inside of the jacket and vest was customized with photos of Alexa and me together. I wore it with Christian Louboutin loafers.

Alexa: I first went dress shopping in Toronto with my mom, my nonna and my maid of honour. I wanted a tight-fitting A-line ball gown in plain satin with no embellishments. We went to three different places, but I didn’t find anything I liked. So, when I was back in California, I went shopping with some friends here and tried on a Monique Lhuillier with a fitted bodice and a side slit. I fell in love with it instantly, but I still wanted to explore all my options. After some more dress-shopping in LA, I finally said yes to the dress. I added custom silk sleeves for another look as well as a cathedral veil and Louboutin pumps.

Max: A few days before the wedding, we rented a cottage up in Muskoka to hang out with our wedding party. The guys went golfing, and the girls did a spa day. Then, on Friday, the day before the wedding, we checked into the JW.

Alexa: We had our rehearsal dinner at Windermere House. A large boat took us and our guests there and back to the hotel, where we had welcome drinks back at the patio overlooking the lake. Then Max and I went with tradition and slept in two separate rooms the night before our wedding.

Max: The morning of the wedding was pretty simple. We just hung out, watching soccer on TV. It was pretty relaxing.

Alexa: We started getting ready bright and early at 7:30 a.m. My mom was with me, and she had a blue dress from Galvan London, so she was my “something blue.” I was worried about the weather—it was raining on and off that day, and I really wanted to do the ceremony outside. My coordinator asked if we should move it inside, but it was just a 20-minute ceremony, and we had ordered a hundred umbrellas as a backup plan, so I figured we should just go ahead with the original plan. If it rains, it rains. Sure enough, it did.

Max: At first, it was drizzling, so me and my groomsmen went up to the altar without umbrellas. Then, just before Alexa walked down the aisle, it started pouring. I had gel in my hair, and it started running down my face and into my eyes. Thankfully, someone came out and brought us umbrellas a few minutes later. I was more worried about Alexa and our guests, but they were great sports about it.

Alexa: One of my favourite memories from the wedding is walking down the aisle, with everyone standing in the rain, and Max and all his groomsmen getting rained on but smiling and looking so happy. Thankfully we had a runner down the aisle, so I didn’t have a problem walking to the altar.

Max: Alexa looked so beautiful. The rain didn’t take away from her bright smile. It’s something I won’t forget.

Alexa: After the ceremony, our guests moved inside for cocktail hour. Max and I went back up to the bridal suite for a quick moment together, most of which was spent taking a blow dryer to each other to dry off. It was a funny and romantic moment. Then we got an early first look at the ballroom where the reception would be. I was just amazed at how everything came together. To see something come to life that you’ve spent hours, days and months planning was really rewarding.

Max: We served three courses for dinner, with chicken, beef filet and mushroom ravioli options for the main.

Alexa: We opted for an espresso martini tower instead of a champagne tower. We played house music, something Max and I both like, during dinner to keep things more upbeat. We had a personal wedding cake for the two of us, then we did crème brûlée as dessert for our guests.

Max: When the DJ started their set, every single person was on the dance floor. We danced the whole night. We played more house music, with a mix of ’80s songs in between.

Alexa: Max and his hockey buddies were hilarious. The guys had their shirts off, and Max was out with just his vest on. At one point, they lifted us up onto chairs. We handed out some glow sticks, and everyone was wearing them.

Max: Hockey players like to have a good time. I had a lot of my Ducks teammates there, like Cam Fowler, Troy Terry, Trevor Zegras, Ryan Strome, John Gibson, Mason McTavish and Frank Vatrano. It was nice to see all my hockey buddies out together. Some of them travelled a long way to be there.

Alexa: We were supposed to get kicked out of the ballroom at 1 a.m., but one of the staff members asked if we wanted to extend until 2 a.m. We were like, “Yeah, of course!” After that, we hung out in a lounge area with a pool table that was tucked away from the front lobby until 3 a.m. No one wanted the night to end.

Max: The next day, we did a casual brunch downstairs at the hotel with our guests. It was nice to reminisce with everyone.

Alexa: The whole wedding felt like a dream. I was so excited and happy.

Max: Alexa and I did a mini-moon to Palm Beach, and we have a longer honeymoon planned this summer.

Alexa: We’re planning to go to Italy. I did a semester abroad in Rome, so we’ll go there and then make our way down to the Amalfi Coast.

Max: Being married doesn’t feel any different. It always felt like we were married, even before we got married.

Alexa: It feels more or less the same. We were each other’s best friends before, but now we’re officially spending the rest of our lives together. We had a busy year in 2024. Aside from getting married, we also moved to Boston.

Max: I signed a two-year contract with the Bruins. We’ve decided to make Birmingham, Michigan, our home base for the off-season, so we bought a house there. It’s a new and exciting chapter for us.

Alexa: I’ve been pushing for a puppy. I’ve always wanted a dog, but it’s been difficult with how busy we both are. I think we’re finally going to do it—Max caved.

Cheat Sheet

Date: June 22, 2024 Photography: 515 Photo Co. Videography: Encore Film Productions Planning and design: Alexa Jesse (Jones) Coordination: Shealyn Angus Wedding & Events Wedding venue: JW Marriott The Rosseau Muskoka Resort & Spa Stationery: Paper Palette Florals: Flower Child Muskoka Drapery: Eventure Designs Aisle runner and dance floor: Dance Floor Dynamics Furniture rental: Gervais Party and Tent Rental Alexa’s dress: Monique Lhuillier Max’s tux: Domenico Vacca, Giovanni Clothes Hair: The Art of Makeup & Hair, Jason at Tomahawk Hair, Boriana Rexha at 6 Salon Makeup: Siobhan Lynch and Jocelyn Barcenas Rings: Larry Flowers Jewelry Photobooth: PhotoboothTO Entertainment: The Classic String Quartet DJ: Impact DJ