"I just take it day-by-day, just do my best, and I'm sure whatever happens will happen.”
The 2024-25 season hasn’t gone according to plan for Trent Frederic.
The 26-year-old Bruins forward was setting himself up for a hefty pay raise after setting a career-high with 18 goals and 40 during the 2023-24 campaign — with his added physicality making him a unique asset if he hits the open market.
But the pugnacious skater has struggled to find traction in his fifth full season in the NHL ranks, scoring five goals and 11 total points over 38 games.
Relied upon as a dependable third-line stalwart, Frederic has not been able to generate much in terms of consistent chemistry with other forwards like Justin Brazeau and Oliver Wahlstrom.
That recent third-line configuration has been hemmed in as of late. Over 20:22 of 5-on-5 reps this season, the Brazeau-Frederic-Wahlstrom line has been outshot, 9-2, and outscored, 1-0. Frederic himself is mired in a nine-game scoreless streak, while his trademark bruising play has also not presented itself over a regular clip.
“Freddy’s been fine. There’s a lack of production, obviously. He hasn’t scored in a while,” Bruins interim head coach Joe Sacco said Monday. “Freddy’s biggest thing is he’s gotta continue to start moving his feet, continue to move his feet when he’s playing, and he has to be physical. I think that’s a big component of his [game].
“When he’s playing hard in the defensive zone, if he’s battling down below the goal line, has his assignments defensively, finishing his checks when they’re there, being hard on pucks, those types of things, that’s when I think his game elevates.”
Even if Frederic’s slumping production might impact his bottom line this upcoming offseason, he reportedly is still viewed in high regard across league circles.
ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reported in November that “several teams are interested” in Frederic if the Bruins placed him on the trade market, while Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman added last weekend that Frederic is still being coveted by multiple franchises.
Even if Frederic’s production has cratered this season, his blend of size and snarl would be valued by a team looking to add a bit more heft to their forward corps ahead of the postseason — while his $2.3 million annual cap hit is also easier to absorb on the books when compared to several other trade chips.
Frederic’s name has become popular in trade whispers across the NHL. But Frederic shrugged off any talk of trade reports on Monday at Warrior Ice Arena.
“I don’t have Twitter, so I don’t see it all,” Frederic said. “I saw something on Instagram a month or two ago, scrolling through and you see yourself. But other than that, I don’t know. I don’t really focus on it too much. Like I said, I just take it day-by-day, just do my best, and I’m sure whatever happens will happen.”
In an ideal scenario, Frederic isn’t looking to don a new sweater in the coming months — be it via trade or free agency.
But even if the Bruins and Frederic might have to grapple with the proper asking price amid his uneven returns on the ice so far this season, Frederic is not looking too far ahead.
“Honestly, I haven’t thought about it in a long time,” Frederic said. “I’m not in any position right now to be worried about a contract, so I’m just out there playing hard and just trying to do my best.”
