By: Eamonn McLean | Follow me on Twitter/X @EamonnMcLean44
The 2024-25 season was full of ups and downs for a lot of prospects in the 2025 Draft class. Roger McQueen missed the majority of the Western Hockey League season with injury. Matthew Schaefer broke his collarbone at the World Junior Championships, missing the rest of the year after a strong start to his draft year.
For James Hagens, his draft campaign brought its fair share of challenges and successes. Hagens entered the year as the favorite to be selected first overall after an electrifying 2023-24 campaign with the United States National Team Development Program that saw him break the all-time scoring record at the U18 World Junior Championships, previously held by Nikita Kucherov. But after a relatively disappointing freshman season at Boston College, Hagens has been overtaken by Matthew Schaefer, Michael Misa, and likely Anton Frondell as well.
Even in a freshman season that some would consider a disappointment, Hagens still put up solid numbers, with 37 points in 37 games playing alongside Eagles teammates Ryan Leonard and Gabe Perreault. Hagens also scored a game-winning goal in the NCAA Tournament against Bentley and won a Gold Medal with Team USA at the World Junior Championships. For many prospects, Hagens’ draft year would be viewed as a resounding success, yet the Hauppauge, New York, native saw his draft stock fall.
While Hagens’ draft projection has dropped, he has still produced at every level he’s played at. Over two seasons with the USNTDP, Hagens had 187 points in 118 games, the fifth most points in the history of the program. He’s won Gold at both the U18 and U20 World Junior Championships and was tournament MVP at the 2024 U18s.
Still, if reports are to be believed, players like Brady Martin, Jake O’Brien, and Roger McQueen could go higher than expected. For example, Martin has been heavily rumored to be selected fourth overall by the Utah Mammoth. It’s also possible that the Nashville Predators could select McQueen fifth. In that case, if the top three are some combination of Schaefer, Misa, and Frondell, at least one of Caleb Desnoyers or James Hagens would be available for the Bruins at seven.
While much has been made of Hagens’ connections to Long Island and his desire to be an Islander, he’s also got a fair amount of New England connections, too. Besides the obvious, that he’s a student-athlete at BC, he also played for two seasons at Rhode Island’s Mount St. Charles Academy.
Hagens will most likely go in the top six; however, if he were to fall to seventh, it could be a grand slam pick for the Bruins. His ceiling is sky high. Hagens is perhaps the most talented offensive forward in the entire draft. At 5’11”, 185lbs, he isn’t the biggest player, but his talent is undeniable. Even if he doesn’t end up being a first-line center, or he ends up on the wing, selecting Hagens would still help the Bruins address a significant area of need. After the departure of Brad Marchand, Boston needs a first-line left-wing, and if he isn’t a center at the NHL level, Hagens would help with that. If he’s available when the Bruins are on the clock, he might just be the best fit of those who will be realistically available.
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