By: Declan Flavin | Follow me on Twitter / X @FlavinDeclan
Has the Bruins’ shaky road trip made you think about a certain shot of energy the team could take before the season ends in a slow drag or collapse? The team is five points clear of the Ottawa Senators and six ahead of the New York Islanders, but they’ve hit their final slump of the season, and these obstacles never follow a consistent timing pattern.
Usually, the team will get out of a rough patch eventually by regrouping with the coaching staff on the details, but at this point, the players could also use a newfound energy so late in the season. In the next few weeks, the organization will be able to show everyone how they plan to time the arrival of the next wave of prospect talent they’ve collected during the retool.
James Hagens or The Process?
By the “button” and energy being referred to, the focus is, of course, on the team’s top prospect, Hagens. Although the seventh overall pick in the 2025 draft has only one goal and three assists in six games with the Providence Bruins, he’s brought his signature skill and finesse without being overmatched by the physical forechecking of the professional game.
This would, in theory, be a good dynamic to add to a National Hockey League roster that has always lacked exactly what this prospect provides, but all indications suggest that General Manager Don Sweeney wishes to hold off. Contrary to the Charlie McAvoy comparisons regarding the track Hagens was poised to be on, Sweeney clearly believes that forechecking details and modern NHL intangibles need to be addressed before calling up any of the youth.
It’s by all means a vote of confidence by the Bruins’ decision-maker in the long-term plan that he set out a season ago. In fact, the team’s quiet trade deadline this season may also reinforce the idea that the GM has been consistent in how he wants to approach the minor and major league rosters.
However, the East still remains wide open in a future playoff bracket, and teams have struck lightning in a bottle with young call-ups before, with Philadelphia Flyers forward Porter Martone being the most recent iteration. The Bruins will likely be okay standings and bracket wise without a distinct move, but it invites an inevitably slow death to the season, and are you and Sweeney really okay with that?
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