Boston Bruins
“I honestly think this is the best I’ve felt off the ice my whole career playing.”
Expectations are high for James Hagens entering his first full season of pro hockey.
Be it his high draft pedigree (No. 7 overall in 2025) or profile as a playmaking conduit in the offensive zone, the former Boston College standout figures to play a key role in Boston’s ongoing retool — especially if he can find his footing in the pro ranks as soon as this fall.
But that’s far from a guarantee — especially given the number of waiver-eligible players on Boston’s roster fighting for those same spots during training camp.
With only four preseason games and less than two weeks of camp practices, Hagens and several other roster-bubble players also have a limited runway to impress Marco Sturm and his staff before cuts begin.
Boston’s full-squad camp doesn’t officially begin until Sept. 16, but Hagens and several other younger players have been on the ice in a team setting since Friday in both rookie camp and the Prospects Challenge showcase.
Speaking to reporters after Friday’s rookie-camp practice, Hagens said he’s ready to make that leap up to the NHL ranks full time.
“You’ve got to be prepared, and you’ve got to be ready. [Training camp] is going to be tough, and it’s shortened this year, so less time to make an impression,” Hagens said. “I honestly think this is the best I’ve felt off the ice my whole career playing.
Being able to stay here over the summer helped me a lot. They know so much. It’s being around the players, being around the staff and trainers – you really have to soak everything in. Everything they tell you, you can use.”
Before he skates with the rest of Boston’s roster and cuts his teeth in preseason games, Hagens has a prime opportunity to build some momentum this fall with a strong showing during the Prospects Challenge in Buffalo.
He got off to a solid start on Sunday evening, scoring a pair of goals in Boston’s 6-2 win over Buffalo’s rookies and other prospects.
Even with a slower start on Sunday, when the 19-year-old forward was trying to do too much with the puck on his stick, Hagens showcased his improved shot on both of his tallies — snapping a sharp wrister into twine after getting handed plenty of time to operate in Grade-A ice.
Hagens’ profile as an elite offensive threat is rooted in his shifty skating, crisp edge work, and vision.
But to take the next step against tougher competition, the young forward will need to continue to ramp up his shot volume — with a few more tallies in the coming weeks helping his case for breaking camp with the NHL roster.
“I am real excited about [Hagens’] potential. He obviously has that high offensive acumen that you love to see in a player…He has the ability to make plays in small areas; now he’s just going to have to get that physicality in his game a little more consistently,” Providence Bruins head coach Trent Whitfield said Friday. “He will come in, play a lot, get his feet under him. An opportunity to really come into camp in good form and feeling good.”
A strong pair of games against other rookies in a prospect showcase may not seem all that consequential.
But Fraser Minten’s encouraging performance in that same event last year was the springboard the young center needed en route to an impressive preseason and a full 2025-26 campaign up in the NHL ranks.
Hagens is looking to follow a similar script as Minten, who went from a promising — albeit unproven — asset last summer into a franchise fixture after inking a seven-year, $50.4 million contract last week.
“The more you play, the confidence will come,” Hagens said. “Just being able to feel trusted out there — you want to be able to go out there and I know these guys all have my back and you have to work towards all of them knowing you have their back as well. It’s going to be really exciting. These are exciting times, everybody’s back. You just hope you can make the team.”
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