With last week’s Bruins development camp now in the rearview mirror, it can easily be called the most encouraging and exciting in recent memory, given the talent level on the ice. It felt like the overall talent on the ice was at a higher level than it has been in quite some time, and there was star power where there hadn’t been any in at least a decade.
James Hagens was the most talked-about Bruins prospect since David Pastrnak — who showed everybody his skill 10 years ago at his first (and only) dev camp following his 2014 selection — and lived up to the tremendous hype while even just simply going through edgework, stickhandling and shooting drills.
The quick explosive skating steps, the swagger with the puck on his stick and the explosive wrist shot paired with the quick release all denote a player with top shelf offensive skills, and even better is the assertive mindset to make things happen when the puck is on his stick. All of that was on display as the 18-year-old Hagens was the unquestioned star of B’s development camp week when it was concluded on Thursday afternoon.
James Hagens snaps the puck past the goalie🔥
— Boston Bruins on CLNS (@BruinsCLNS) July 1, 2025
Bruins First Round Pick impressing with fans in the stands👀
CLNS Media⚡️by PrizePicks pic.twitter.com/Qla0OUKlXH
The natural question remaining after such a performance is when, exactly, that dynamic player will be donning Black and Gold and skating around TD Garden instead of shining amongst his peers. To his credit, Hagens consistently avoided any kind of confirmation that he was returning to Boston College, even in the waning days of development camp when it seemed clear that’s the way things were trending.
Leaving the NHL door open seemed understandable in the moments after the B’s drafted him 7th overall a couple of weeks ago, and it all speaks to the tremendous confidence he has in his ability to play in the NHL someday soon. But it’s pretty clear what’s going to happen based on everything that has transpired since then with the Bruins bringing aboard a number of free agent forwards to fill the NHL roster: Hagens will go back for one more year of college hockey that should be his last provided there’s a dominant step forward for him at that level.
“I think in some ways it’s going to benefit him [going back to college],” said Bruins Player Development Coordinator Adam McQuaid. “Continuing to ramp up the commitment level and consistent impact that he’s capable of having, that’s the big thing for a lot of young players, bringing the consistency night in and night out. It’s not always going to be perfect. But just bringing the effort and wanting to be a driver and a difference maker like he wants to be, will help him along in that process.
"It's kind of crazy to think that this time last week that the draft hadn't even happened right? So a lot's happened in a short period of time. You do like that he has that mindset and that goal [to play in the NHL], as soon as possible, but we'll talk through it. It's a long game. We'll figure out what's the best path for him."
The best path is pretty obviously watching Hagens dominate the Boston College landscape in his sophomore season as a 19-year-old, and to improve on the point-per-game player he was as a true freshman at the Heights last season. It will be a bonus if he can add more muscle mass to his 190-pound frame and spearhead the Eagles winning an NCAA title that’s eluded them in the last couple of seasons.
But it’s all within his talented reach as the gifted Hagens spends a deliberate developmental season within the college ranks.
It’s something that Hagens himself will welcome as a challenge, as well as presumably improving on the 11 goals that he scored while serving as a playmaker for linemates Ryan Leonard and Gabe Perreault last season.
"You want to be able to put on muscle, gain weight. You want to be ready," said Hagens, who was selected to take part in the USA Hockey World Junior Summer Showcase along with fellow Bruins draft pick Will Moore that’s usually a precursor for inclusion on the Team USA roster for the World Juniors in December. "You want to be able to work for a roster spot at the Bruins, whether that's going back to school or doing it right away. I want to be a Bruin really bad, so no matter the timeline, I'll work towards that."
Looking for a close parallel to how this might all look for Hagens is the example of Charlie McAvoy, and how his final college hockey season played out for Boston University after being drafted by the Black and Gold in the first round of the 2016 NHL Draft. McAvoy went on to have a strong sophomore season for the Terriers, where he checked all the boxes before going pro at the end of the season.
The initial plan was for McAvoy to just play some games in Providence to close out the season and then prep for his first year of pro hockey the following campaign. Instead, a series of blueline injuries opened the door for McAvoy to suit up for the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs, where he made his NHL debut for the B’s and kicked off his Bruins career by playing solidly alongside Zdeno Chara in the postseason pressure cooker.
It's obviously impossible to predict if Hagens is destined to be thrust into a playoff spotlight for the Bruins at the end of this upcoming season, but don’t rule it out that the teenager could be making his B’s debut a short nine months from now after one more collegiate campaign at the Heights.
“You want to be able to work for a roster spot with the Bruins, whether that’s going back to school or you’re doing it right away,” said Hagens. “I want to be Bruin really bad, so no matter the timeline, I’ll work towards that.”
The start of Hagens’ Bruins career is definitely in the “sooner rather than later” category, but there’s no reason to rush the final steps of development in what everybody hopes will be a franchise player for years to come.
