Bruins Get to Know Prospects at NHL Scouting Combine

BUFFALO - There’s more to learning about a prospect than watching them on the ice. Getting to know the person away from the rink is an essential part of the scouting process. As such, the Boston Bruins interviewed 74 of the 90 prospects that attended the 2025 NHL Scouting Combine at KeyBank Center and LECOM Harborcenter over the last week.

With the seventh overall selection in the upcoming draft, and six other picks throughout the seven-round selection process, the Bruins focused on finding a player that could make a massive impact on the future of the organization. Boston will make its selections at the 2025 NHL Draft at L.A. Live’s Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, California on June 27 and 28.

Ryan Nadeau, Boston’s Director of Amateur Scouting, values getting to know the prospects away from hockey as an aspect of identifying a key fit for the organization.

“The Combine is an opportunity for us to get to meet a number of these kids off the ice,” Nadeau said immediately following the prospect interview period, which ran from Monday morning through Friday afternoon. “We see them so much playing hockey and at the rink, but now we get to know them a little bit and ask them some questions and just get a better feel for the personality of the kid.”

“We’ve got to be pretty direct and concise,” added Nadeau. “At the same time, we try and keep it comfortable so the kids don’t feel too intimidated and are going to answer the questions and give us a little background and insight into why they play hockey, what’s driving them forward, and different things that we can find out that have helped these kids get to a spot where they are now in consideration to be drafted into the NHL.”

One of the players that the Bruins spent time with this week is James Hagens, who is familiar with the city of Boston. The 5-foot-11, 178-pound forward posted 11 goals and 26 assists in 37 games during his first season with Boston College, helping the Eagles reach the national quarterfinals.

Hagens enjoyed his conversation with Boston on Wednesday morning.

“It was awesome. They are great people and easy to talk to,” Hagens said during Friday’s media availability. “There are a lot of connections because of the couple of Bruins guys on our roster this year. Being able to connect about that, talk about the guys on our team, how they’ve done, they’re great people. It was a really great conversation we had.”

Victor Eklund, a 5-foot-11, 161-pound forward that the Bruins interviewed on Tuesday afternoon, acknowledged the importance of the face-to-face meetings with organizations.

“They’re trying to get to know us outside of hockey,” Eklund said during Friday’s media availability. “They’ve seen us play but never really gotten to know us. This is a pretty good opportunity for them to get to know us and us to get to know them. It’s been really exciting and I’ve had a lot of fun this week.”

The Combine, overall, was a unique experience for the prospects that attended. Not only do the players get to meet with many different NHL organizations in a short period of time, but they get to know many like-minded peers who are eagerly awaiting to hear their name called at the Draft in late June.

“It’s super fun getting to see friends and meet new teams and getting to see people you met throughout the season,” said Matthew Schaefer, a 6-foot-2, 183-pound defenseman that tallied 22 points in 17 OHL games this season with the Erie Otters. “It’s great to get to know people. I met some general managers but maybe not the rest of their staff. Seeing what their teams are about and testing you on some things, it’s pretty cool to be there with your friends, working hard, and competing.”