After the New York Islanders shoved their way past them in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Boston Bruins locked up a little bit of brawn for the next couple of years.
The Bruins re-upped 6-foot-2, 230-pound forward Trent Frederic to a two-year deal worth an annual NHL cap hit of $1.05 million.
Frederic, taken with the 29th overall pick in 2016, made the roster this season out of training camp and had an initial positive impact, throwing his weight around and not shying away from dropping the gloves with the likes of Washington’s Tom Wilson, one of the toughest players in the league. He also showed a knack for getting under opponents’ skin.
Boston’s Trent Frederic (11) and Washington’s Tom Wilson (43) fight during an NHL game in Boston in March. AP file photo
But the 23-year-old St. Louis native hit something of a rookie wall. He finished with just four goals and one assist in 42 games. He did not register a point in the final 16 games he played. He missed three weeks in April to a non-COVID illness and, in that time, the B’s acquired Curtis Lazar for the fourth line in the Taylor Hall deal. That squeezed him out of ice time and he did not play in the postseason.
Neither Frederic’s ceiling nor his best position is known yet. Drafted as a centerman but seeing most of his opportunities at left wing this year, he’s not expected to be a top-six forward. But is he a third-line player who can contribute offensively on a reasonably consistent basis? Or is he a fourth-liner who’s more in the mold of, say, a Matt Martin, an effective checker/brawler for whom goals are mostly gravy? Frederic does skate fairly well and possesses a heavy shot, though he did not employ it enough. He recorded just 44 shots on net in those 42 games
There is also the question of the expansion draft coming up on July 21, and that’s just one uncertain front the B’s are facing this offseason.
The Bruins are expected to protect seven forwards, three defensemen and a goalie, though they could protect eight skaters (regardless of position) and a goalie. If they go the 7-3-1 route and there are no major transactions between now and the draft — and presuming they wait to re-sign UFAs Hall and David Krejci, if that is in the cards — those forwards expected to be protected would be Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak, Charlie Coyle, Craig Smith and Jake DeBrusk, leaving one more spot on the protected list for Frederic, Nick Ritchie or Lazar. There is also the possibility that DeBrusk gets moved, especially if the B’s think they can sign Hall.
Presumably, the fact that the Bruins signed Frederic means they have interest in protecting him. That would leave Ritchie — a restricted free agent with arbitration rights (and after scoring 15 goals in 56 games, might command more than Boston wants to pay) — and Lazar — pegged as the B’s fourth-line center at the nice price of $800,000 — free for the Seattle Kraken to grab. On defense, it seems a given the Bruins will protect Charlie McAvoy, Brandon Carlo and Matt Grzelcyk, leaving Connor Clifton, Jeremy Lauzon and Jakub Zboril as the enticing unprotected assets.
There is plenty that has yet to unfold, and the Frederic signing is just the start of what should be an interesting summer.
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