CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. \u2014 On a recent Tuesday, James Hagens woke up to attend his 9 a.m. Engaging Catholicism course at Boston College. After lunch, Hagens arrived at Conte Forum to work out. He and his BC teammates then practiced until 4:30 p.m., an endpoint he exceeded with shooting and power-play work. After dinner, the sophomore planned to go to his 7 p.m. Brain, Mind and Behavior class.<\/p>\n
It is a long day. But it is a routine Hagens enjoys from its start to its conclusion, after which he returns to Ninety St. Thomas More, the dorm where he shares a suite with seven good friends.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s nice when you\u2019re occupied,\u201d the 19-year-old said. \u201cYou don\u2019t want to just be sitting around, not doing anything. It\u2019s nice to have class, come to the rink, hang out with all the guys on the team.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2024, Hagens, 17 at the time, arrived at The Heights with various tasks ahead: holding his own against 25-year-olds, fitting in between future pros Gabe Perreault and Ryan Leonard, and interviewing with 32 NHL teams.<\/p>\n
One season later, he has just one club upon which he wants to leave an impression: the Boston Bruins, who selected him at No. 7 in the 2025 NHL Draft.\u00a0This leaves Hagens at a different stage of his education.<\/p>\n
As Perreault and Leonard have advanced to the NHL, Hagens is trying to become more assertive. He is adapting to apply his 185 pounds in NHL-like scenarios: inside the faceoff dots, on the boards. As for the latter, Hagens is finding himself on the walls more often with a move to left wing.<\/p>\n
The way coach Greg Brown sees it, shifting the natural center out of the middle gives BC more offensive balance. It is also an opportunity for the teenager to focus on offense and learn another position.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause when you do go pro, you want to be able to be put anywhere,\u201d Brown said. \u201cNot just be slotted in at one position.\u201d<\/p>\n
As to that, it could be just a matter of time before Hagens says goodbye to BC. Leonard (No. 8, 2023), Perreault (No. 23, 2023) and Jacob Fowler (No. 69, 2023) turned pro after their sophomore seasons. So did Cutter Gauthier (No. 5, 2022). Like Hagens, all played for the U.S. National Team Development Program before BC.<\/p>\n
Can Brown convince Hagens to return as a junior?<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know if the Bruins \u2026\u201d Brown answered with a laugh. \u201cYou tell them. You ask them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Singular skill set<\/p>\n
Hagens has 11 goals and 12 assists in 20 games. His 23 points put him in a tie with fellow Bruins prospect Dean Letourneau, the No. 25 pick in 2024, atop the BC roster.<\/p>\n
Hagens missed two BC games while playing for Team USA at the 2026 World Juniors, where he scored seven points in five games \u2014 one less than team leader Will Zellers, the prospect the Bruins acquired in the Charlie Coyle trade.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a high-tempo, up-and-down game that suits his game well,\u201d said Brown, a U.S. assistant at the tournament. \u201cBut even when it\u2019s a tighter game in college, he still knows he can do that and has the capabilities to do that. And to still elevate and create when he has possession. Because he\u2019s so good at possessing the puck.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hagens has always played in the middle because he likes the puck on his stick. Specifically, his strength is high-speed puck transportation. It is not exaggerating to say he resembles Connor McDavid in full flight.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe makes it look effortless, the way he goes through the neutral zone or even in the offensive zone,\u201d Brown said. \u201cThe way he can possess the puck in the offensive zone, it\u2019s not easy. It\u2019s a small area with 10 guys in there. He\u2019s still able to hold it and make his reads while he\u2019s skating around the zone. You don\u2019t see a lot of people that can carry it like that in the O-zone and be in total control.\u201d<\/p>\n
BC hosted the University of New Hampshire on Jan. 23. Hagens lined up at No. 2 left wing next to Andre Gasseau and Oscar Hemming. Gasseau, the Bruins\u2019 seventh-round pick in 2021, managed down-low coverage in the defensive zone. It gave Hagens an extra step to go on the attack.<\/p>\n
Although he changed five-on-five positions, Hagens took his usual spot on the right-side half-wall on the power play. His strength is threading pucks to teammates. But he has been working on his shot. Hagens has moved up to a 70 flex on his Bauer stick \u2014 still whippy, but better aligned with the muscle he\u2019s added.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust trying to get the shot off as much as possible,\u201d Hagens said. \u201cKnowing when it\u2019s time to shoot and when it\u2019s time to pass. Something I was definitely working on. Something that I think has been an impact this year.\u201d<\/p>\n
During a first-period power play, Hagens drifted to the right dot and waited for a Luka Radivojevic pass from the top. UNH goalie James Chauvette pushed to his left in anticipation of a Hagens one-timer. Letourneau, who was in the bumper, also waited for Hagens to let his shot loose.<\/p>\n
Instead, Hagens dished the puck to Letourneau. Chauvette had no chance.<\/p>\n
Tic-tac-goal<\/p>\n
\ud83d\udcbb ESPN+ | https:\/\/t.co\/jkFSIdjBVp<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/aNlmv7GWL3<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 BC Men’s Hockey (@BC_MHockey) January 24, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIf the goalie thought he was going to shoot, that definitely freed up some net for me,\u201d Letourneau said. \u201cProbably caught him a little off-guard, too.\u201d<\/p>\n Letourneau, a fellow sophomore, has 13 goals this season. He had none in 36 games in 2024-25 as an 18-year-old freshman.\u00a0<\/p>\n Letourneau and BC had planned for last season to be a transition year with the USHL\u2019s Sioux Falls Stampede out of St. Andrew\u2019s College. That plan changed when Will Smith signed with the San Jose Sharks on May 28, 2024, leaving the Eagles short a center.<\/p>\n \u201cThe jump from Canadian prep school to college, nobody makes that jump,\u201d Brown said. \u201cThere\u2019s always a stop of junior somewhere. So for him to make that jump and really keep his head down and work throughout the year \u2026 I hope he wasn\u2019t reading social media. People were frustrated. They wanted more from where he was drafted. But we could see the progress. We could see the hands and the IQ in practice. It just wasn\u2019t ready to come out in games.\u201d<\/p>\n Letourneau had to adjust to NCAA pace. Hagens did not.<\/p>\n In the third period of that Jan. 23 game, Hagens stripped Conner de Haro at center ice. Hagens instantly accelerated to initiate a two-on-one rush with Ryan Conmy. With Alex Carr defending the slot-line pass, Hagens approached the right dot and snapped a slingshot through Chauvette to give BC a 4-2 lead.<\/p>\n Hagens doubles the lead!<\/p>\n \ud83d\udcbb ESPN+ | https:\/\/t.co\/jkFSIdjBVp<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/ZrbvzJggth<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 BC Men’s Hockey (@BC_MHockey) January 24, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cHe was able to play with pace, keep the puck through the offensive zone and neutral zone and create a few plays,\u201d Brown said after BC\u2019s 5-2 win. \u201cHis pass on the power play for Dean\u2019s goal was really alert. He had a great fake, found Dean and put it right in the right spot where Dean could one-time it. If that\u2019s 6 inches in either direction, Dean\u2019s not going to be able to hit it like that.\u201d<\/p>\n What\u2019s to come<\/p>\n BC has 12 regular-season games left. The Eagles are 13-8-1 after going 27-8-2 last season. It\u2019s possible they can gain an NCAA Tournament bid without winning the Hockey East Tournament. But that is no guarantee.\u00a0<\/p>\n Hagens knows the team\u2019s situation. It has his attention. His expectations are high. As imminent as NHL life may be, his thoughts do not stray beyond campus.<\/p>\n \u201cThe great thing about being at a school like this is how your main focus is on what you\u2019re going to do today, how you\u2019re going to be able to impact your team right now and moving forward,\u201d Hagens said. \u201cWe want to be able to win a Beanpot, win a national championship, win a Hockey East trophy. There\u2019s a lot of big things coming ahead for us. It\u2019s just making sure your mind\u2019s here.\u201d<\/p>\n Brown is counting on Hagens to lead the way down the stretch. He is killing penalties. He\u2019s playing against dangerous offensive players. He is improving his defensive positional awareness after a lifetime of more puck possession compared to pursuit.<\/p>\n But his strengths are on offense. It starts with his feet. Hagens is both graceful and explosive, mixing in crossovers to give himself straight-line speed and change-of-pace deception. In tight real estate, he uses his hands and vision to execute silky passes and snappy shots. These are not common assets within any NHL organizational depth chart, let alone that of the Bruins. Hagens already has top-six NHL skill, whether it\u2019s at center or wing.<\/p>\n Hagens ties it up! pic.twitter.com\/eHjoIdrnrB<\/a><\/p>\n