The Boston Bruins seem headed for a separation with centerman Trent Frederic at this year’s Trade Deadline. The two sides haven’t made progress on a potential extension per Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli, who adds that Frederic’s enforcer style and scoring upside could be an interesting mix for deadline buyers. Seravalli names teams like the New Jersey Devils and Edmonton Oilers as potential buyers, as both look to add bulk to protect their stars.
Frederic has found a strong role as an enforcer in Boston’s bottom-six. He has 21 fights over the last three seasons, including four this year. But he’s also shown flashes of interesting scoring upside, netting 17 goals and 31 points in the 2022-23 season after scoring 23 points in the first 119 games of his career. Frederic backed up the breakout season with 18 goals and 40 points last year, seemingly giving him the momentum for a big year this season. He’s instead looked more like he did early in his career – boasting 44 penalty minutes and 152 hits in 56 games this season, backed by just 15 points.
That downtick seems largely thanks to Frederic’s shooting percentage deflating to just 10.5 percent this year, after sitting north of 14 percent over the last two seasons. But his physical presence has kept him on Boston’s third line despite low scoring. Young enforcers aren’t often the feature of deadline conversation, and the chance to buy Frederic before he enters unrestricted free agency this summer could be enticing for a team in need of grit.
Frederic’s asking price in a trade or on an extension will be hard to gauge. His dock in scoring likely limits his asking price. He’s also largely expendable after Boston signed the team’s fights leader, Mark Kastelic, to a three-year extension earlier this year. But Frederic is just 26 years old – and offers a proven physical track record, willingness to fight, and potential for resurged shooting percentage. For playoff hopefuls, those traits could be desirable enough to inspire a bidding war – especially amid a quiet deadline season.