James Hagens’ Four-Goal Game Leads Bruins to Prospects Showcase Sweep

The Boston Bruins prospects are in Buffalo for a pair of games against the Buffalo Sabres prospects.

The Bruins closed the Prospects Showcase with a 4-3 overtime win against Buffalo at LECOM Harborcenter on Monday. The Bruins had five different goal scorers on Sunday, but only needed one just 19 hours later.

Rookie camp invite Jan Larys picked up the win in between the pipes.

On Sunday, it only took the Bruins 25 seconds to get the scoring started. That was not the case Monday afternoon; it took 9:24 for the game’s first goal.

Buffalo’s Gavin McCarthy, a former captain of the Boston University Terriers, scored on a delayed penalty to Jaxsin Vaughan to give the Sabres their first lead of the Prospects Showcase.

Vaughan knocked Buffalo’s Brayden Holberton down, and that spurred the first and only fight of the Prospects Showcase. Holberton connected with a few lefts early, but Vaughan fired back with three rights and knocked the Buffalo forward down with an uppercut.

Cole Chandler sprung Concord, MA native Will Manchuso on a breakaway in the dying seconds of the first period, but Sabres goalie Samuel Meloche denied the chance. The Sabres took a 1-0 lead into the room.

The Bruins did not capitalize on a power play early in the second period. Shortly after, while shorthanded, Attilio Biasca was also denied on a breakaway.

Buffalo’s Zac Funk carried the puck with speed up the left wall and dropped it back to a trailing Maxim Strbak. The Slovakian defenseman beat Larys low blocker side to extend the Sabres’ lead to two.

Strbak’s goal was the Sabres’ first 5-on-5 goal of the Showcase.

James Hagens, who scored two goals on Sunday, did not slow down overnight. On the power play, Hagens bumped the puck to Thomas Zocco and set up in the left circle.

Zocco found Hagens, and the seventh overall pick found his corner and beat Meloche for the first time on Monday.

The Bruins got another power play, and in the dying seconds of the second period, Hagens got the puck in the left circle. Again, Hagens picked his corner and beat Meloche high glove side to tie the game.

His two goals came within 104 seconds of each other.

Cole Chandler was tripped, putting the Bruins on a power play. Attilio Biasca was then taken down, giving the Bruins a five-on-three for 67 seconds.

Trent Whitfield called his timeout at the 1:53 mark of the third period.

Shortly after the timeout, at the 2:41 mark, James Hagens fired from behind the circle and beat Meloche high to complete the hat trick and give the Bruins their first lead of the afternoon.

Buffalo’s Liam Valente tied the game with 11:27 remaining. Doman Szongoth played the puck through the neutral zone, and the Sabres forward beat Larys on the blocker side.

The Bruins and Sabres were tied at 3 after 60 minutes of play, so they lined up for a five-minute 3-on-3 overtime. At the 1:08 mark, Thomas Zocco went to the box for a tripping minor, and Buffalo used its timeout.

The Bruins killed the penalty, and the two sides played 4-on-4 until a whistle came with 51.6 seconds remaining.

The Bruins ended up with possession after the whistle, and Nolan Geerdes pushed the puck into the offensive zone.

James Hagens picked the puck up, and with Geerdes crashing on the opposite side, Hagens beat Meloche for the fourth time of the afternoon, sending his water bottle up and bringing the Prospects Showcase to a close.

The Bruins prospects opened the 2026-27 season with a road sweep over the Buffalo Sabres. Hagens finished the tournament with six goals, leading all skaters by a country mile.

Training camp opens on September 16, with the Bruins first taking the ice on September 17.

Also Read:James Hagens Scores Twice, Bruins Prospects Open With Win Over Sabres

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