Boston Bruins
“He was excellent, starting to feel it a little bit.”
James Hagens has points in back-to-back games for Providence. Ken McGagh for The Boston Globe
James Hagens appears to be settling in to his new surroundings down in Providence.
After going scoreless in his pro debut with the P-Bruins on Wednesday, the Bruins’ top prospect scored a goal and added an assist in back-to-back games against AHL competition over the weekend.
The 19-year-old forward lit the lamp for the first time as a pro on Saturday in Providence’s 6-4 win over the Bridgeport Islanders at the Amica Mutual Pavilion. He took a feed from Riley Tufte and rifled the puck into the twine on the power play.
Hagens continued his point streak on Sunday, recording the primary assist on a Georgii Merkulov goal in an eventual 4-2 loss to the Springfield Thunderbirds.
Awesome sequence by James Hagens here.
Hagens fights through coverage, enters the zone and hits Georgii Merkulov for a goal: pic.twitter.com/sR7ljSDNQv
— Evan Marinofsky (@EvanMarinofsky) March 29, 2026
Hagens showcased his skating ability en route to that helper on Merkulov’s goal, weaving through the neutral zone and gaining a clean entry over the blue line before hitting Merkulov on the tape for the tally.
After opening his AHL career on Providence’s top line with Patrick Brown and Matej Blumel, Hagens was shifted to a skilled second line alongside Matthew Poitras and Merkulov. P-Bruins head coach Ryan Mougenel was impressed with how Hagens’ skating and playmaking ability complemented that forward grouping.
“I don’t think anybody was particularly great today, but I really liked 12’s [Hagens] second and third period,” Mougenel said, per Providence hockey scribe Mark Divver. “He was excellent, starting to feel it a little bit. I moved him up with [Merkulov] & [Poitras] and saw the skill, put that together and see what it looked like.”
Hagens and the Providence Bruins will resume play pn Wednesday when they take on the Utica Comets on the road. They will then battle the Syracuse Crunch on Friday before taking on Rochester on Saturday.
Hagens — currently playing on an AHL amateur tryout contract in Providence after closing out his sophomore season at Boston College — could join the Bruins at some point this season if he signs his entry-level contract.
A strong stretch against AHL competition could put Hagens in the mix for a late-season promotion. But for now, the Bruins have the luxury of letting Hagens earn some experience in Providence — especially with the NHL club winning five out of its last six games.
“James believes in his skill set,” Don Sweeney said of Hagens’ NHL timeline last week. “Marco has even pointed it out, the speed and skill that we identify can add to our lineup and complement our lineup, and we would like to. But it has to be at a stage where you can trust a player. And that’s what James is going to start to go through here.
“He’s been doing it for the rest of the second part of the year, in particular, when we identified some things, and our development staff worked with him. And he’ll apply that while in games, real early on in pro, and see if it translates. If it doesn’t translate this year, it’ll translate next year, and we’ll just go down the normal path a player takes. But, the skill and the offensive acumen that he has are exciting for us.”
Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.
Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
