James Hagens 2025 NHL Draft Scouting Report

Vitals

Position: Center

Age on Draft Day: 18.62

Height, Weight: 5'11", 176 lbs

2024-25 stats (NCAA): 37 GP, 11 G, 26 A

Scouting Report

James Hagens' defining trait is his agile skating. He does have a good pace in open ice, but his standout quality is his ability to float on his blade edges and find pockets of space with effortless changes of direction and bursts of acceleration.

Hagens can go from a full sprint to an immediate, sharp pivot without sacrificing any pace. He's the player you want carrying the puck through the neutral zone to beat a conservative forecheck, and he is tough to contain in the offensive zone, as he usually finds ways to scoot out of pockets of pressure.

Hagens is a true playmaking center, as the numbers bear out, with 70 percent of his points in the NCAA last season being assists. So how does he do it?

It starts with his vision. His understanding of spacing on and off the puck is top-tier. He has strong peripheral awareness and is good at mentally anticipating how his own movements will open new lanes around defenders and for teammates—whether that's when creating an east-west passing opportunity on the puck or in order to get himself open in the offensive zone.

He also operates with dexterous stick skills. His hands are really quick, and he does a wonderful job of receiving passes in a way in which he can get rid of it just as quickly, making him effective at tic-tac-toe passing sequences or simply as a catch-and-release shooter to beat an out-of-position goaltender.

With his quick mental processing, soft hands, and evasive properties, Hagens has the tools to be a dynamic creator.

Hagens' biggest offensive pitfall is his subpar shooting. Lack of velocity on his shot or disguise in his release makes him a virtual non-threat from beyond close range. One can see that in the on-ice locations for his goals last season, provided by SportContract:

The goals he does score mainly come via getting open around the net and then passing the puck into an open goalmouth before the goaltender can get into position. That's an excellent trait to have, but when we're talking about potential first overall picks, you want to see some ability to sling pucks into the top corners of the net against a set goaltender.

The other knock is Hagens' size. He's 5'11" and 177 pounds. And while other smaller centers such as Sidney Crosby or Brayden Point compensate with talismanic understanding of leverage, Hagens is still trying to figure this out.

To his credit, Hagens finishes his checks and is not a pacifist in the face of bullying around the net or after whistles. He's never going to proactively make things happen on the rugged side of the game, but he does not get enough credit for his refusal to be intimidated by physicality.

He also has upside as a respectable defensive center. With his anticipatory skills and skating, he's already showing signs of becoming a center who patrols the neutral zone and jumps into lanes to intercept plays.

Draft Outlook

Hagens entered the season as the consensus No. 1 overall pick. Since then, his stock has fallen. Few project him to go first or even second, while some have dropped him as far as sixth overall.

Still, the market has overcorrected. Maybe his season at BC was good rather than great, but it's easy to forget how difficult the college transition can be for a 17-year-old.

The rest of his resume should earn him some benefit of the doubt. He was excellent at the World Junior Championships for Team USA, producing nine points in seven games, and the year prior he was dominant for the US National Development Program on an otherwise below-average roster.

We can safely eliminate the earlier hopes that Hagens would develop into a franchise player, but he maintains upside as a true first-line offensive center. It's fair enough that Hagens has dropped to third overall on the consensus rankings, but this is a weak draft class and the possibility remains that in five years we'll look at him as the best player from the group.

I'd sooner consider him with the second overall pick than I would let him drop to fifth or sixth.

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