How a 'relentless' Trent Frederic braced himself for another shot at cracking Bruins' roster

It didn’t take Trent Frederic very long to ingratiate himself to the TD Garden crowd. 

The box score on the night of his NHL debut back in January 2019 might not exactly jump off the page: 8:29 of ice time, two hits, two shots on goal and zero points recorded.

But the B’s first-round pick (29th overall) in the 2016 NHL Draft certainly made the most of the five minutes he spent in the sin bin — given that he used Brandon Tanev’s face as a speed bag in his first career scrap. 

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Frederic’s physical tools (6-foot-2, 203 pounds) are rather evident — as is the St. Louis native’s willingness to drop the gloves at a moment’s notice. That size and snarl stand as some of the primary reasons why Frederic is viewed as a key piece in Boston’s growing prospect pipeline — presenting a skillset that could come in handy as soon as this summer. 

“It just depends on how it presents itself in the game,” Frederic said of his willingness to scrap. “I enjoy doing it and sticking up for my teammates or whatever the case would be. ... So far I really enjoyed — my buddies get hit or something,  I can hop in — that doesn’t necessarily involve fighting, but I enjoy that aspect and part of the game. Yeah, I'll probably be doing it (in the NHL).” 

Much like his Providence teammate in Jack Studnicka, Frederic is well aware that a resumption of play for the 2019-20 NHL season could signal major opportunities — whether it be rejoining the “Black Aces” or logging minutes in the NHL ranks outright.

As Boston can attest to last season — in which the absences of bruisers like Chris Wagner and Kevan Miller were felt during a slugfest against the Blues in the Cup Final — inserting a big body like Frederic into the lineup could pay dividends during a grueling playoff series. 

But given the amount of competition already present on Boston’s roster, it would seem unlikely that Frederic would earn a legitimate shot at cracking the club’s roster this summer if his lone asset is his ability to drop the gloves. 

But, as Providence head coach Jay Leach was quick to note, Frederic provided much more than just heavyweight bouts during his second year in the AHL ranks.



Frederic may not want to paint himself in a corner as just a brawler, but it's tough to ignore the amount of punishment he doled out to the competition down in Providence in 2019-20. After spending 67 minutes in the penalty box over 55 games as an AHL rookie, Frederic paced the entire league in PIM this season with a whopping 148 in 59 games.

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But in Leach's system, Frederic was far from a bottom-six pest asked to muck up any scrum within a 30-feet distance from him on the ice. While he may not have the offensive production generated from other P-Bruins forwards like Studnicka, Frederic began to chip in with steady production as Providence started to hit its stride — ranking fifth on the club with 32 points (eight goals, 24 assists) in those 59 games.

Frederic, who made a concerted effort this year to improve his skating and ability to play the puck in mid-stride — as opposed to stopping to assess plays developing in front of him — started to become much more in sync during his club's O-zone possessions, where his size could be utilized on an aggressive forecheck.

"He has so many different attributes that not many have," Leach said of Frederic. "He's obviously a bigger guy that has a heck of a shot and can get up and down the ice. And then you add the physical component that he has with really confrontation more than anything being a part of his game. He really, I found, was able to gain some huge strides in that especially with just his consistency, night and night out of being that guy to play against. When you can get to that point, you're relentless and he certainly showed that. He's going to continue to improve on that."

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For Providence captain Paul Carey, Frederic's willingness to throw haymakers with just about anyone on the opposing bench is not just a testament to the 22-year-old skater's toughness or love of a good scrap. Sure, they might play a part — but oftentimes, Carey noted that Frederic's brawls are the byproduct of protecting his teammates out on the ice.

"Not only can he produce and score goals and make plays, he's also a guy that will stick up for his teammates and lead by example in that way," Carey said. "It's not very often you get a guy with his size and his skill who can produce over half a point a game and also lead the league in penalty minutes. So guys really respect him in the room, and he's a natural leader. He's a good teammate, and for me, he's a guy that really stepped up this year and helped us come together as a group and be more successful." 

For Frederic, who has spent quarantine back home in the St. Louis area, all signs appear to be pointing toward NHL hockey resuming in the near future. With restrictions being lifted in Missouri, he even noted that he was able to get back on the ice and skating at a nearby rink last week.

"We had a zoom call yesterday with (Boston) and there's some dates thrown around," Frederic said. "So it sounds like there's going to be some hockey. I don't know much. I'm more of a listener right now than knowing what's going on with the NHLPA and all that stuff. But it sounds like there will be some playoff hockey for sure."

As noted earlier, Frederic does have a steep uphill climb for a chance at getting into game action with Boston. Along with the amount of regular NHLers already vying for bottom-six minutes on Boston's roster, the University of Wisconsin product's last couple of stints in the NHL have left a bit to be desired in terms of offensive production — with Frederic failing to record a point in his first 17 games with Boston.

Granted, a majority of those reps were last season, in which Frederic himself admitted that he was "too passive" while focusing on not making any mistakes. But if Frederic wants to make another sustained push for an NHL gig this summer, he's going to need to bring much more than just a couple of heavy right hooks.

After all, Boston is already well aware of the damage Frederic can provide in that regard.

"I think from year one ... and then this year, I think I've made a huge jump," Frederic said. "Even when I played my first game in the NHL, which was over a year ago now, I think I'm a way better player and more of a complete player now than I was then. So it's just the every day, learning stuff, hanging out with older guys and learning stuff like that. For me, I'm playing my best when I'm playing physical and having a positive impact on the game. That doesn't have to be scoring or having an assist or anything like that. It's just having a positive impact on the game and I've learned to do that."