Latest news with #BostonCollege
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Adam Sandler's NHL Draft Cameo Leaves Bruins Pick Overjoyed
Adam Sandler's NHL Draft Cameo Leaves Bruins Pick Overjoyed originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Although not exactly a hockey movie, "Happy Gilmore" has become a staple of sports pop culture because of its eponymous protagonist played by Adam Sandler. Advertisement In the movie, Gilmore, who has failed in his dream to have a career in hockey, is always seen wearing a Boston Bruins jersey even while playing golf. That has resonated with hockey fans in real life, particularly with Bruins supporters. During Friday night's 2025 NHL draft in Los Angeles, Sandler, wearing a Bruins jersey, made a surprising pre-recorded video appearance as 'Happy Gilmore' to announce Boston's pick at the No. 7 spot in the first round. 'My name is Happy Gilmore. How are you?' Sandler began in the pre-recorded video. 'Proud to be part of the 2025 NHL Draft. The Boston Bruins select from Boston College, James Hagens. Way to go, homie!' The 18-year-old Hagens certainly liked the Bruins' move to enlist the help of Sandler to announce the selection. Advertisement "I'm so excited. I'm so excited to be back in Boston and to have Adam Sandler make the pick, it was special," Hagens said after (h/t staff writer Anna Kulesa). James Hagens is selected by the Boston Bruins in the first round of the 2025 NHL Draft at Peacock Lee-Imagn Images Hagens played 37 games for the Boston College Eagles during his freshman season in the 2024-25 campaign, scoring 11 goals and dishing out 26 assists for 37 points. Viewed as a future top-line center in the NHL, Hagens' debut for the Bruins will be highly anticipated by their fans, who are eager to see Boston become a legitimate Stanley Cup contender again after the team went just 33-39-10 to miss the NHL playoffs in the 2024-25 season. Advertisement The Bruins still have work to do in the draft this coming Saturday, as they have six more picks lined up heading into the final day of the event. Related: Fans Moved by Islanders' Meaningful Gesture Toward Matthew Schaefer This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 28, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
NHL Draft: Boston Bruins Steal James Hagens In 'A Dream Come True'
LOS ANGELES – The Boston Bruins pulled off a great feat at the 2025 NHL draft: they got a super-talented player lower than expected, while adding another chapter to the rivalry between Boston sports fans and New York sports fans by snapping up center James Hagens. While New York Islanders supporters hoped their franchise would use two first-rounders it got for moving Noah Dobson to trade up and select the Long Island native, Hagens ended up going seventh overall to the Bruins, who got a little help from Happy Gilmore himself in making the pick. Advertisement "You're just sitting, waiting to hear your name called and when you hear Adam Sandler call it, it's pretty cool," Hagens said. "This is a really cool moment." Hagens, of course, knows Boston well. He just finished his freshman season at NCAA Boston College, where he helped the Eagles rank at or near the top of the national polls pretty much all season. "It's the coolest thing in the world," Hagens said. "It's close to home, so it's nice for my parents. I wanted to go to school in Boston, and turns out I'm a Boston Bruin now, so it all worked out. It really is a dream come true." 2025 NHL Draft Tracker: Round 1 Picks, Reports, Rankings And More 2025 NHL Draft Tracker: Round 1 Picks, Reports, Rankings And More The 2025 NHL draft day is here. Check out the picks and scouting reports of the first round as they come in, as well as draft rankings and much more prospect coverage. Advertisement No doubt the Bruins were pinching themselves when their turn came, and Hagens was still on the board. The gifted pivot was a pre-season front-runner to go first overall, but as time went on, other players caught up and passed him. It's truly not an indictment of Hagens, who won world junior gold with Team USA and had a very impressive college season, given his age. But his frame is smaller than some of the other centers that went in front of him, and as history indicates, smaller players tend to get dinged on draft day, particularly in the first 10 selections. From the sounds of it, the Bruins kept pretty good tabs on Hagens this season. "I talked to them a lot," Hagens said. "My sister had a tournament in Boston so I drove her up, and I was able to meet with one of their scouts there. I was in contact with them a lot, obviously being close to them at Boston College." James Hagens walks up to the stage after Adam Sandler announced him as the Boston Bruins' pick. (Kirby Lee-Imagn Images) If Hagens needs any more inside info, he can just call up some of his Boston College teammates: Andre Gasseau, Dean Letourneau and Oskar Jellvik had already been drafted by the Bruins in previous classes. Advertisement As for all the hype about him potentially going to his hometown Islanders, Hagens wasn't going to bog himself down in what-ifs before the picks were actually made. "I blocked it all out," he said. "I didn't know what was going to happen. You're not sitting in those rooms, and I'm really happy to be a Boston Bruin." For a franchise in desperate need of centers now and in the future, the Bruins now have a very good option once Hagens is ready to turn pro – and it won't take long. Promo image credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
National Post
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- National Post
What was NHL thinking with draft format that set league's entry draft back decades?
One of the highlights (low bar, admittedly) of the spectacularly ridiculous NHL entry draft on Friday night came when comedian Adam Sandler announced the Boston Bruins choice with the seventh overall pick in the opening round. Article content The joke, however, was on the league and its idiotic decision to effectively ruin the presentation of one of its signature events. Article content Article content With representatives from teams not on site in Los Angeles for the first time and the traditional meet and greet between player and management done remotely, well, you just knew there were going to be cringe-worthy moments. Article content And on cue, seconds after Happy Gilmore himself announced James Hagens as the Bruins prized selection, there may as well have been a laugh track. Once on stage, the Boston College product walked into something called the Draft House — don't ask — to look at a group of Bruins executives beamed in via Zoom from Boston. And look was all Hagens could do. Article content What was supposed to be an emotional welcome to the NHL moment instead turned awkward, thanks to technical difficulties that muted those Boston staffers presumably excited with their newest would-be star. So instead of an attempt at legit emotion, Hagens sheepishly waved at the screen and said 'thanks for drafting me.' Article content It got worse, as absurd moments stacked up on each other. It was unclear who the NHL could possibly have identified as a target audience that would appreciate what was happening, but from bizarre to juvenile, the misses were many. Article content Awkwardness was always going to be part of the show when the NHL went for cheap and contrived by opting for its 'decentralized' draft format for the first time, allowing GMs and their vast hockey operations departments to work from home, essentially. Article content Article content Unfortunately it set one of the league's signature events back decades with a futile format bordering on embarrassment. Article content Article content It sucked the emotion out of what was a dream sequence for every young hockey player with NHL aspirations. Article content It muted the excitement of the respective fan bases, given the cold and awkward approach to unveiling their new talents. Article content The main event itself was held at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles where commissioner Gary Bettman was live, as were the first-round picks. But once a player was drafted and on stage, and sauntered into that inane Draft House for a contrived video interview with his new employers, it tended to go off the rails — at best — and fail spectacularly at worst.
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Boston Bruins select James Hagens with 7th overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft
The Boston Bruins have selected Boston College star James Hagens with the seventh overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. The 18-year-old Hauppauge, New York, native appeared in 37 games for the Eagles during the 2024-25 season, where he recorded 11 goals, 26 assists, totaling 37 points, which was fourth amongst freshmen in the NCAA. Hagens also maintained a plus-21 rating. Advertisement Hagens got a special introduction from award-winning comedian and 'professional golfer' Happy Gilmore Adam Sandler. The 5-foot-11, 177-pound forward ranked third among Boston skaters while also earning a spot on the Hockey East All-Rookie Team. In 2023-24, Hagens was a part of the U.S. National U18 Team as part of the National Team Development Program, where he appeared in 58 games, tallying 39 goals and 63 assists for 102 points. Most recently, Haggens was also a member of the United States' gold medal-winning team at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship, which ranked second among U.S. skaters in points (9) Advertisement This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Boston Bruins Select James Hagens With 7th Overall Pick
The Boston Bruins have selected forward James Hagens with the seventh-overall pick of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, as announced by the legendary Adam Sandler. With the Bruins desperately needing help at the center position, it is huge that they have landed Hagens with the seventh-overall pick. He was one of the best prospects in this year's draft and has the potential to be a major part of the Bruins' future. Advertisement Hagens, 18, appeared in 37 games this season with Boston College, where he had 11 goals, 26 assists, 37 points, and a plus-21 rating. Photo Credit: © Eric Canha-Imagn Images
