It’s that time of the year for The Win Column’s NHL draft rankings and draft profiles! Using our very own consolidated rankings, we will be taking a look at the top 50 prospects for this year’s draft. The 2025 NHL Draft will take place on June 27 and 28 at the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles. The NHL is testing a decentralized draft this summer.
Next up at third is James Hagens, a skillful and creative American forward who was at one point the consensus first overall pick. While opinions have changed since then, Hagens is still projected to go high in this year’s draft as he carries tremendous upside.
Who is James Hagens?
| Player | Position | Handedness | Height | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Hagens | C | Left | 5’11” | 176 lbs |
Hagen’s on-ice production
| Year | League | Team | GP | G | A | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–20 | AYHL 13U | Long Island Royals 13U AAA | 21 | 14 | 17 | 31 |
| AYHL 14U | Long Island Royals 14U AAA | 13 | 7 | 5 | 12 | |
| 2020–21 | 14U AAA | Mount St. Charles Acad 14U AAA | 27 | 27 | 30 | 57 |
| 2021–22 | NEPACK 15U | Mount St. Charles Acad 15U AAA | 10 | 13 | 3 | 16 |
| 15U AAA | Mount St. Charles Acad 15 U AAA | 54 | 54 | 61 | 115 | |
| 2022–23 | NTDP | U.S. National U17 Team | 43 | 26 | 40 | 66 |
| USHL | USNTDP Juniors | 31 | 17 | 23 | 40 | |
| NTDP | U.S. National U18 Team | 17 | 7 | 12 | 19 | |
| WHC-17 | USA U17 | 7 | 8 | 13 | 21 | |
| WJC-18 | USA U18 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 5 | |
| 2023–24 | USHL | USNTDP Juniors | 26 | 18 | 29 | 47 |
| NTDP | U.S. National U18 Team | 58 | 39 | 63 | 102 | |
| WJC-18 | USA U18 | 7 | 9 | 13 | 22 | |
| 2024–25 | NCAA | Boston College | 37 | 11 | 26 | 37 |
| WJC-20 | USA U20 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 9 |
After dominating minor hockey in his home state of New York and in Rhode Island, Hagens would begin his journey in the U.S National Development Team program in 2022. He would start on the program’s U17 team, where he put up an impressive 26 goals and 66 points in 43 games. He would additionally play 31 games with the junior team of the USHL, scoring 17 goals and 40 points. Hagens would also have a stint with the development program’s U18 team, proving his strong skill set by scoring 19 points in 17 games.
Hagens would begin the next season splitting time between the USHL’s junior team and the NTDP’s U18 team, where he proceeded to score 39 goals and 102 points in 58 games. After this remarkable stretch, Hagens was considered one of the best the NTDP had to offer, and his recognition among scouts started to increase heavily.
Starting this season, Hagens elected to enter the NCAA’s hockey program as a freshman at Boston College. He began this season as the consensus first-overall pick among NHL scouts, but opinions have differed since then. Hagens has put up very respectable totals, being a point-per-game player for the Eagles, and also recorded nine points in seven games for Team USA at the World Junior Championships.
He was among Team USA’s leaders in ice time, being a number-one centre, and was fourth in team scoring during the tournament. However, expectations were that Hagens would dominate more at the college level. As a result, Hagen now has some competition regarding being a first-overall pick, but is still destined to be selected early this draft.
Hagens’ strengths and weaknesses
Hagens’ elite skillset revolves around his strong playmaking abilities and skating. He’s quick and agile and often gives his opponents a tough time catching up to him. His utilization of crossovers and edgework has been a major part of his success.
Additionally, his speed allows him to generate offence with ease, as he’s very aware of developing plays where he can present himself as an offensive option for his teammates or vice versa. This is due to his strong conditioning, which has resulted in his being in great shape.
Hagens has also been praised for his versatility on the ice. You’ll often find the young forward showing off bold decisions through creative plays, as he’s got the skill to back them up. He’s also not afraid to get dirty, as he’ll be seen engaging in puck battles. His shot is elite, and he’s got great vision, which is important to possess as a playmaker. He’s also quite defensively responsible, further showing off his developing two-way game.
As for his weaknesses, his size has been a bit of a disadvantage. While Hagens will battle hard during plays, he’s often pushed off the puck a lot, which results in rushing plays and avoiding further contact. To ensure this isn’t a problem in the future, Hagens will have to add to his build through muscle building and other off-ice training routines.
Hagens has also struggled to translate his offence into NCAA play, which has resulted in him falling a bit in rankings. However, there’s certainly more good than bad, and he’s in for immense growth as he continues his development journey.
Fit with the Flames
We like to think what would happen if the Calgary Flames had the ability to draft high this season, and Hagens would be a great pick. He’s one of the best centres available in the 2025 draft, and Calgary, needing a number-one centre in their system, would happily welcome him.
Hagens would instantly become the best centre on the team and would complement Calgary’s young players well. The Flames don’t have a forward in their system that has as much upside as Hagens, and his creativity and upside would be something that would be huge to the Flames’ young core.
Hagens’ NHL projection
Hagens’ falling draft position should not be a deterrent, as he has so much to offer as a player. He’s still likely to be a top-five pick, and Hagens has the tools to become a number-one centre in the NHL
Jack Hughes and Logan Cooley have been used as examples of NHL comparisons for Hagens. Both players are former products of the U.S National Development Team program and have gone on to become core pieces for their respective franchises. It’s not a guarantee that Hagens takes the same route, but his skillset is similar to both players, and he’s been a consensus first-overall choice for a reason.
Summary on Hagens
Hagens may very well go first overall this year, but the emergence of other players in this draft class has made it unlikely. Still, Hagens is a player who has all the tools and skills to become a star in this league. He’ll be a great choice for a team that’s looking for a blue-chip prospect with a huge upside and a player who could only grow even more if shown the right development path.
Risk: 1/5
Reward: 4.5/5
NHL comparables: Jack Hughes, Logan Cooley
Projection: First line centre/elite second line centre
Check out all of The Win Column’s individual player profiles of selected 2025 NHL Draft prospects:
Matthew Schaefer | Michael Misa | James Hagens | Porter Martone | Anton Frondell | Victor Eklund | Roger McQueen | Caleb Desnoyers | Jackson Smith | Jake O’Brien | Carter Bear | Radim Mrtka | Lynden Lakovic | Brady Martin | Justin Carbonneau | Malcolm Spence | Cameron Reid | Logan Hensler | Cameron Schmidt | Ben Kindel | Kashawn Aitcheson | Cullen Potter | Braeden Cootes | Ivan Ryabkin | Blake Fiddler | Cole Reschny | Joshua Ravensbergen | Bill Zonnon | William Moore | Jack Nesbitt | Jack Murtagh | Milton Gastrin | Sascha Boumedienne | Henry Brzustewicz | Adam Benak | Shane Vansaghi | Cole McKinney | Jakob Ihs-Wozniak | Ryker Lee | Ben Kevan | Michal Svrcek | Arvid Drott | Conrad Fondrk | Charlie Trethewey | Luca Romano
