The Semifinals of the World Junior Championship are upon us. But, in the games preceding these penultimate matchups, Team USA's James Hagens, Sweden's Victor Eklund and Latvia's Bruno Osmanis have contributed solid performances for their squads.

It’s time to open the notebook once more and take a look at a few players eligible for the 2025 NHL draft. This time, we will check in on three players who have been impressing scouts at the world juniors in Ottawa over the past couple of weeks.

The series is designed to give readers a peek inside my scouting notebook as I review and scout the current crop of draft talent. It’s an excellent way to shine a light on part of my process and give hockey fans a bit of a peek behind the curtain of what I – and every NHL team – do in preparation for the NHL draft.

There have been quite a few impressive draft-eligibles at the World Junior Championship. American top-line center James Hagens has been phenomenal alongside his Boston College teammates, Victor Eklund has proven that his name belongs in the conversation near the top of the draft, and Bruno Osmanis helped Latvia to the nation's best performances at the tournament. While Osmanis may not go as high as Hagens or Eklund, he deserves mentioning as a possible sleeper for the upcoming draft.

James Hagens, C, Team USA/Boston College (NCAA), 5-foot-11, 176 pounds

Dec. 28, 2024, vs. Latvia (WJC) - This was a game in which Hagens showed up in a big way, proving to be the best player on the ice for much of the game. His craftiness as a playmaker and awareness of where everyone was and how the play was developing both on and off the puck was incredibly impressive.

He had two assists in the game, the first of which came on the powerplay. Hagens received the puck at the top of the right circle and immediately spotted a seam where he fired a bullet to Ryan Leonard on the back door. His pass had plenty of zip on it, getting through the lane before anyone could close on it and Leonard simply did what he could to handle the pass and banged it into the net. It was the perfect pass for the situation as the Latvians were very quick to cut down lanes throughout the game.

His second assist came on a beautiful weaving give-and-go with Zeev Buium, entering the zone and crossing the ice laterally high in the zone and getting the pass. As Buium worked by the defender to go toward the back door, Hagens fired a crisp pass to him so that he could outwait the netminder with no one around to shovel it into the cage.

This kind of skill and creativity were evident throughout the game. Hagens’ ability to weave and misdirect defenders was a big part of why whenever he made a pass, the recipient seemed to have a few extra feet of ice and space for themselves. Hagens was always looking to find teammates in dangerous areas, attacking the middle and cross seam passes whenever necessary to try and get the Latvian netminder to move laterally.

His defensive game did leave a bit to be desired at times, lacking the urgency that you want to see. His speed and agility were factors though as he was able to close on loose pucks or pressure defenders when he wanted to.

With his advanced transition ability, silky smooth hands and wicked vision, Hagens showed why he is a contender for first overall. It was the Latvians, but those same Latvians were victorious the previous night against Canada. Hagens continues to showcase his impressive play-driving nature through his passing and skating alongside his Boston College teammates at the WJC.

Victor Eklund, LW, Sweden/Djurgarden (Swe.2), 5-foot-11, 161 pounds

Dec. 31, 2024, vs. Czechia (WJC) - This wasn’t the best game Eklund has had at the WJC but as he always seems to do, he finds a way to be effective and make a positive impact with his B-game. Eklund’s non-stop motor, willingness to do the little things and finding of ways to enhance his teammate’s game over forcing his own are what made this an impressive showing for him.

His lone assist came late in the second period as he and Felix Nilsson battled for the puck against the Czech defenders and winger along the boards and in the corner. Eklund eventually outworked the defender and bumped the puck back up the boards to Nilsson who found Anton Wahlberg in space as he attacked the net and eventually scored. Eklund used astute stick lifts and leveraged his inside position along the boards to get the puck on the play. It wasn’t a sexy assist and it wasn’t a play that displayed an elite level of skill but it showed off his persistence and work rate.

Throughout the game, Eklund was making high-end plays at both ends of the ice. His energy never waned and that was always going to allow him to be a functional player for Sweden. Defensively, Eklund was consistently pressuring and forcing passes before the puck carrier wanted to make them. He was getting into the opposing cycle and disrupting it along the wall to try and get things moving in the right direction.

Eklund made his presence known on the forecheck as well, using his speed and physical nature to attack defenders on puck retrievals and getting to loose pucks before anyone else. He showed excellent lane recognition and his willingness to engage physically was a major advantage. Eklund wasn’t only inviting contact throughout the game, he was initiating it when hunting down pucks.

This wasn’t Eklund’s best game through the round-robin, but it showed just how effective and integral he can be when he isn’t on his A-game. He showed some nice playmaking at times, hitting seam passes or going low-to-high from below the goal line a couple of different times. The ability to consistently be involved and effective is something many players do not possess.

Bruno Osmanis, RW, Latvia/Bjorkloven (Swe.2), 5-foot-11, 170 pounds

Dec. 30, 2024, vs. Germany (WJC) - Make no mistake, Osmanis is a project but he looked very good against the Germans in this game. He showed some excellent chemistry with the team’s best player, Eriks Mateiko, who he assisted on the team's first goal of the game, before burying the second of the game himself.

On the first goal, Osmanis collected the puck out of a scrummed faceoff and curled below the goal line from the corner in the offensive zone. A quick pass to Mateiko who was standing inside the dot for a one-timer got Latvia on the board. Osmanis showed some nice puck handling and protection ability on the play. On the second goal, another offensive zone faceoff was won but this time Osmanis got the puck off of a deflected pass, rounded to the top of the point and ripped the puck on net to tie the game.

Throughout the game Osmanis was working off his linemates well, presenting himself as an outlet when off the puck and looking to find space for himself. There wasn’t always great logic to his movements off the puck but he was always trying something to get open. He showed some decent quickness to get in behind opposing players.

One area that really stuck out as a positive for Osmanis was his puck reception ability. He had a knack for collecting pucks in awkward positions or pulling the puck out of piles. He showed some excellent puck handling in general.

Osmanis’ defensive play was hit or miss but he was at least giving an effort on most shifts. He didn’t always know exactly what to do, but he was doing something at the very least. His effort often led to finding a way to get the puck out of danger. He did a good job of helping control play and allowing Latvia to be in the driver's seat when his line was on the ice. It wasn’t a perfect game and Osmanis has quite a bit of refinement needed, but there was plenty to like for a late-round prospect. 

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