If you had told Bruins fans before the 2024-25 season that their team would have the opportunity to draft James Hagens, they probably would have wondered how the heck Boston ended up with the first overall pick.
The Bruins didn’t end up with the No. 1 pick, of course. They are set to pick seventh in Friday night’s NHL Draft, still higher than any B’s fan would have anticipated. For much of the past nine months, that seemingly would have taken them out of the running for Hagens, the talented Boston College freshman who entered the season as the presumptive top pick.
With the draft now just a few days away, though, the Bruins just might get the chance to draft Hagens after all. The question is: Will they take him even if they do have that chance?
Hagens has become everyone’s favorite candidate to slide down the draft board. He had already slipped out of the running for the top spot, and probably second as well. Now, if all the recent reporting is to be believed, he’s not going third or fourth either. He might not go fifth or sixth. And some even have him sliding right past the Bruins at seven, maybe all the way to ninth or 10th.
So, what is happening here? Hagens dropping out of the top two was understandable. We covered this more in depth a few weeks ago, but the short of it is that while averaging a point per game as an 18-year-old in college hockey is impressive by any normal standard, it falls short of the standard set by the likes of Macklin Celebrini, Jack Eichel and Adam Fantilli – the best of the best when it comes to draft-eligible freshmen in the last decade or so. That is probably the standard Hagens needed to meet, or at least come close to, this past season to remain ranked ahead of Matthew Schaefer and Michael Misa.
Dropping out of the top five is less understandable. Hagens is still a player who was one of the most productive in the history of the U.S. National Team Development Program. He set records at the World U18 Championships and World U17 Hockey Challenge. He helped the U.S. win World Junior gold in January as the team’s No. 1 center and top forward in ice time. He is one of the best skaters and playmakers in this draft class. He absolutely still has the potential to be a No. 1 center in the NHL, and maybe even a star-level one at that.
And yet, he’s ranked seventh in Bob McKenzie’s final draft rankings released this week, a ranking devised from polling 10 NHL scouts. It’s now easier to find mock drafts that have him slipping to six, seven or further than it is to find ones that still have him going in the top five.
By all accounts, the Chicago Blackhawks are more likely to target someone bigger than the 5-foot-10-and-a-half-inch Hagens at three – probably Anton Frondell, Caleb Desnoyers or Porter Martone. Same story at four for the Utah Mammoth, who are reportedly enamored with Brady Martin in addition to the names above. That does make some sense given that both teams already have a No. 1 center who is on the smaller side (Connor Bedard and Logan Cooley, respectively).
The Nashville Predators at five might be more intrigued by the physicality of Martin or the size/skill package of Roger McQueen, despite the back injury that cost him most of this season. Playmaking wizard Jake O’Brien seems to be a hot mock draft pick for the Philadelphia Flyers at six.
The Bruins should welcome all this. If Hagens actually does drop to seven, general manager Don Sweeney and company should call in the pick with a giant smile on their face. Boston’s biggest organizational need is a No. 1 center who can help drive their offense. Those kinds of players do not get to free agency, they rarely get traded, and the Bruins have not had high enough picks to draft one. But now, a player with that kind of upside might fall right into their laps.
“I'm based out of Boston, so I got to see James quite a bit. We saw him a lot in previous years as well,” Bruins director of amateur scouting Ryan Nadeau said at the NHL combine earlier this month. “He was a key component of the US National Team Development Program and a driver there, and was able to step into Boston College and play on their top line with some really good players. Watching him and the way he skates and the way he can attack open ice, and the way he can create space, and he's got such good skill and vision, and he's such a good driver. It was impressive to watch him this year.
“His game has really come along. He's gotten stronger, and it helped to be in college and take on that challenge. Even after school to now, he's worked really hard to put on some extra muscle. And getting to know James and spending a little bit of time with him, he comes from a really great family. He gets to play with his brother at Boston College. Both his parents are eighth-grade teachers. He's just a really, really impressive kid. He's got a young sister who's a pretty good hockey player too, and just a good family dynamic. And just spending a little bit of time with him, it's been good to see him off the ice and get to know him.”
That sounds like someone who would be thrilled if his team got the chance to draft Hagens. The Bruins probably should be, and maybe would be. But there have also been rumors that Boston might be open to trading the seventh pick, and one rumor in particular would have the New York Islanders – already owners of the No. 1 pick – trading back into the top 10 to take Hagens, a Long Island native and lifelong Islanders fan.
According to RG’s Jimmy Murphy, the Bruins have shown interest in a trio of Islanders – right-shot defenseman Noah Dobson, left-shot D Alexander Romanov, and veteran center Jean-Gabriel Pageau. Only Dobson, a 25-year-old who finished eighth in Norris Trophy voting two seasons ago, would make any sense at all in a trade involving the No. 7 pick. Even then, he is a restricted free agent in need of a contract that might pay him $9-10 million a year, and he plays the same position as Charlie McAvoy.
Dobson is very good. He would help the Bruins now and for many years to come. But he doesn’t really fill a glaring organizational need. Hagens, if he reaches his ceiling, would. And even if Hagens doesn’t make it to seven, any of Frondell, Desnoyers, O’Brien, McQueen or Martin would represent the kind of upside at the center position that the Bruins probably shouldn’t pass on unless they’re truly blown away by an offer. Watching one of them develop into a No. 1 center elsewhere while the Bruins are still searching for theirs would be an abject disaster.
If anything, trading up to ensure they get the player they want would make a lot more sense than trading out for the Bruins. And there is at least some reporting that suggests they are exploring that possibility as well: The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler reported Tuesday morning that the Bruins “have interest in moving up.” He lists Hagens, O’Brien and Martin as potential targets.
The Bruins might not have to move up to get one of those guys, though. Chances are at least one of them will still be on the board at seven, and it just might be Hagens.