When James Hagens attended Bruins’ growth camp earlier this month, the Boston Faculty centerman who was drafted No. 7 general by the B’s had mentioned a number of occasions that he needed to be a Bruin as quickly as doable.
However whereas there was no official announcement, Hagens certain made it sound like he’s headed again to Chestnut Hill for an additional season in a narrative printed Wednesday.
Talking to NHL.com’s Mike Morreale on the World Junior Summer season Showcase in Minneapolis, the 18-year-old Hagens outlined his objectives for the upcoming season on the Heights.
“I would like to have the ability to win a Beanpot, have the ability to win a nationwide championship,” he mentioned. “Everybody has their roles, however our workforce purpose is profitable. That’s what we wish to do. We fell quick final yr, nevertheless it’s hopefully going to occur this yr.”
Hagens returning to BC can be no shock. It’s comprehensible that Hagens gushed about eager to be Bruin as shortly as doable within the whirlwind days simply after being drafted. Most excessive draft picks exude the identical sort of enthusiasm in these rapid heady days.
However GM Don Sweeney had intimated from the outset that the membership’s most well-liked route for Hagens, who instantly shot to the highest of the B’s prospect lists, was to return to BC in 2025-26, the place he can proceed to hone his plentiful talent and take a better management position with the Eagles.
“He’ll in all probability look to generate a bit extra, look to have a shoot-first mentality at occasions,” mentioned Sweeney on the time of the draft. “He had an opportunity to play with (present Washington Capital) Ryan Leonard, who can actually hearth the puck. Chances are high, particularly as a younger participant, you look to verify he has the puck in his fingers loads of occasions. He did a very good job of that and distributing. However they’ve misplaced loads of gamers. Will probably be a great alternative for a number of of our guys who’re at that college to take that step. He’ll be proper on the entrance of that line. He’ll have the arduous matchups in opposition to the opposite high strains in school hockey. Will probably be a great take a look at for him.”
Hagens entered his freshman season at BC because the projected No. 1 choose however his inventory dropped a bit when he didn’t have an explosive season, simply an excellent one. He centered the primary line with Leonard and Gabe Perrault (one other first spherical choose now with the Rangers) and was a point-a-game participant with 11-26-37 totals in 37 video games.
BC coach Greg Brown is trying ahead to seeing continued development from Hagens in his sophomore season.
“The issues he does nicely, he’ll have the ability to carry and translate for BC but in addition proper into the NHL,” Brown instructed Morreale. “Like several younger participant going to the NHL, you need to deliver your flooring up, and which means getting greater, stronger and quicker. However then it’s concerning the particulars it’s essential play with to achieve success, and once more, that simply takes time. He has an ideal hockey mind. He reads issues shortly and clearly, so I feel simply the evolution of his recreation will likely be extra of that this yr.
“He’ll make selections which are both going to be good or they’re going to be impartial. They’re not going to be detrimental.”
The Eagles will likely be like one other Bruins’ farm membership in 2025-26. Together with Hagens, 2025 second spherical choose Will Moore, 2024 first spherical choose Dean Letourneau, 2023 second rounder Kristian Kostadinski, 2021 fifth rounder Oskar Jellvik and 2021 seventh rounder Andre Gasseau will likely be Greg Brown’s lineup.
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