The Boston Bruins had a fantastic first night of the NHL Draft, and it's hard to figure out which part was the best.
Despite picking No. 7 overall, Boston landed one of the best prospects in this year's class. James Hagens was the pick, thanks to both the Nashville Predators and Philadephia Flyers both passing on him with back-to-back selections. It was a bit of a head-scratcher, but one that worked out perfectly for the Bruins given what they need to help usher in the next dominant era for the franchise.
As if having Hagens fall to them wasn't already great enough, especially since he's a local kid who went to Boston College, the way the pick was made only makes things even better.
Adam Sandler helped introduce one of the steals of the draft for the Boston Bruins
A slew of celebrity guests helped make the picks on Friday night, and Adam Sandler, as Happy Gilmore, popped out to help announce the Bruins pick.
Adam Sandler welcomes Boston College’s James Hagens to the Boston Bruins‼️ pic.twitter.com/Ggb1lbWlu6
— ESPN (@espn) June 28, 2025
It doesn't get much cooler than that.
On the NHL Draft couch where ESPN was conducting its interviews, Hagens told Leah Hextall that Happy Gilmore is his favorite movie of all-time which only made the moment even more special.
Everything about the way Hagens' career in Boston is beginning rules, but the best part might be what's ahead. All gimmicks aside, the Bruins needed a center for the future and had one of the best in this year's top-heavy draft class fall right into their laps with the seventh pick.
He's a pass-first center but can score when it matters which is exactly the type of talent the Bruins can develop into being a leader of this next generation of players on the roster. When Boston sold at the deadline last year it seemed like it might be a while before we saw them get back to the top of the Eastern Conference, but Hagens falling to them might help speed that process up just a little bit.