Day 1 is in the books for training camp for the Boston Bruins for the 2026-27 season. Things are going to go quickly, with the regular season set to begin in just 11 days for second-year head coach Marco Sturm and his club.
There are going to be some questions that are going to be answered over the coming days and weeks leading into Opening Night against the New York Rangers on Sept. 29. One of those questions is going to be what things look like for some of the Black and Gold's prospects, like James Hagens and Matthew Poitras.
However, when it comes to Hagens, Rachel Kryshak of ESPN summed it up perfectly as to why the 19-year-old needs to begin the season in the NHL with Boston, rather than in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Providence Bruins.
James Hagens needs to make the Bruins roster for one big reason
Now, there is one thing that we need to get out of the way right away. Looking too deeply into lines on the first day of training camp is a complete waste of time. Don't do it. Things are going to change. Coaches are experimenting. Nothing more, nothing less. Don't take the bait. Sure, some lines might end up coming into reality; however, more don't than do.
Now, as far as Hagens goes, he was on the kid line again withFraser Minten and Marat Khusnutdinov. That's where he played last season in his short NHL stint. However, please don't read too much into that. As far as Kryshak goes, one sentence in her take on Hagens should not go unnoticed. She broke down the next wave of young NHL stars.
When it came to Hagens, she mentioned, "There is a distinct possibility that Hagens breaks camp on the wing with the Bruins, simply because the Bruins believe it is better for his development to play in the NHL rather than the AHL.''
Bingo. Staying in the NHL is much better for his development than going down and wasting his time in the AHL. Nothing against other Bruins prospects in Providence or prospects of other teams, but putting Hagens in the AHL would be a big waste, as it has been for Poitras. Let's call it like it is.
Some 19-year-old kids would benefit from more development in the AHL, but not Hagens. He proved last weekend at the Prospect Showcase in Buffalo that he's ready, with six goals, including all four in Monday afternoon's 4-3 overtime victory. Time will tell where Hagens ends up, but anything short of Boston would be a disappointment for his development.
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