That night, the New York Islanders could have begun the arduous trek back to their glory days. As the 2025 NHL Draft went underway, the Long Island native James Hagens was expected to be named the newest Isles star. However, in a remarkable twist, the Bruins swooped in to pour a bucket of cold water on all those hopes and upset the New York fans to no end.

Hagens, who made his name as an emphatic NCAA center, was one of the top prospects for this year’s NHL Draft. Despite his stock steadily dropping in the days leading up to the hockey event, the 18-year-old star was still a frontrunner to be picked by one of the top NHL franchises. With him being a Big Apple-born talent, it was understandable that the Islanders fans were hoping James would be the one to spearhead the team’s new era after a poor 2024-25 campaign. But leave it to the Bruins to spoil the mood!

ESPN‘s Greg Wyshynski posted on X on June 27 how the 2025 NHL Draft suddenly turned out to be a demoralizing affair for the Islanders. After Hollywood superstar Adam Sandler, a known Bruins fan, announced that Boston picked James Hagens as the 7th overall pick, New York fans were left in tatters. “The @NYIslanders draft party is sad as James Hagens is taken by the @NHLBruins,” reads the caption of the social media update.

As soon as it was clear that the NCAA celebrity wasn’t going to be making his way to the Islanders’ camp, New York loyalists were seen leaving the UBS Arena en masse. The energy inside the Islanders’ home venue changed as soon as the Hollywood celebrity announced Hagens’ imminent move to Boston.

But was it that unprecedented? We’d argue that it wasn’t. After all, Hagens made a name for himself in the NCAAs as a Boston College centre. Naturally, when the Bruins, who have a pretty big gap in their offensive line, were running on the clock at the NHL Draft at the Peacock Theater, they didn’t hesitate to zero in on the BC sophomore.

Trading Trent Frederic, Justin Brazeau, Charlie Coyle, Brandon Carlo, and Brad Marchand in March, the Bruins also had their pockets lined, which made picking Hagens as the team’s highest pick in the 2025 NHL Draft a no-brainer. And GM Don Sweeney had good reasons to do so, too! In the years before his freshman season (2024-25), Hagens had already created quite a stir in the U.S. National Team Development Program’s Under-18 team. With 39 goals and 102 points in 58 games, James became the eighth-highest scorer in the program’s history, tying Patrick Kane’s 2005-06 record.

Justifiably, the Islanders camp is feeling low for missing out on such a talent. “He was definitely one of the guys we were looking at. We had him high on our list…But he’s a good player, so that’s why the [Bruins] picked him,” said New York GM Mathieu Darche after the first night of the 2025 NHL Draft came to an end. However, while Darche’s sadness is understandable, it’s not like the Islanders didn’t have something to be happy about, either.

The Isles’ fairly positive 2025 NHL Draft so far

The Islanders missed the playoffs for the first time since 2021. With their last Cup victory coming in 1994, the 2024-25 season was another disappointment that the fans could have done without. With that in mind, Darche was justifiably desperate to beef up the roster to the best of his ability at this year’s NHL Draft. And with the chance to make the first pick, he got the perfect chance to do so. New York added three new names to its roster on Friday night.

The Islanders drafted Matthew Schaefer, the top overall prospect at this year’s NHL Draft. Despite dealing with a lot of personal ordeals, the Erie Otters defenseman has been one of the most notable players in the 2024-25 season. Playing only a few games in the season (17 regular-season games for the OHL’s Erie Otters, 2 in the inaugural CHL-U.S. NTDP Prospects Challenge, and 2 with Team Canada at the 2025 World Junior Championship) due to a clavicle injury incurred in December, the 17-year-old still managed to show that he’s capable of shouldering big responsibilities for his team. That’s definitely a win in our books for the Islanders!

Moreover, thanks to the selling off of Noah Dobson, the Isles also had enough cap space to rope in two more stars in the first round of the NHL Draft: Former Calgary winger Victor Eklund and Kashawn Aitcheson from the Montreal Canadiens, who is known for being a physical defenseman. With the second day of the Draft still to go, who else do you think could be on their way to the Big Apple? Do you believe they will be enough for the Islanders to make amends for the dismal 2024-25 season? Tell us your thoughts below!