The Boston Bruins may look like they’re set in the center position ahead of next season, but we fully expect young center, Trent Frederic to finally make it stick and be in the line-up come opening night.
Trent Frederic went pointless in fifteen games for the Boston Bruins last season, albeit only managing 9 minutes per night.
His University of Wisconsin numbers certainly suggest there is production there with 33 and 32 points in his two seasons in the NCAA. Likewise, with the Providence Bruins, Trent Frederic has 33 points in 68 career games.
Since falling to the Boston Bruins in the first round (29th overall) in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, Trent Frederic has ticked all the development boxes. In fact, the St. Louis native pulled out an impressive 5 goals in 7 games a season ago at the World Junior Championship.
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There are plenty of prospects in the Boston Bruins system, in fact there’s a stockpile in the center position alone, but you’d have to imagine that Trent Frederic leads the charge. At twenty-one, he is likely the most ready to make the step-up down the middle.
Now obviously, the Boston Bruins have recruited players in the off-season and you’d expect the likes of Brett Ritchie and Par Lindholm to be above the younger guys on the depth chart, but places are there to be won. Competition is never a bad thing when it comes to deciding upon the opening night roster.
As a draft pick of the team, you have to think that the efforts the Boston Bruins have put into his development may well put him in line to challenge. The obvious reason that Trent Frederic makes the roster is that Charlie Coyle is seeming likely to be slotting in on the right wing of the second line.
That will mean the third line center spot is opened up. Now, we’re not saying to expect Trent Frederic to step straight into the top-nine; in fact, we think it more likely that Sean Kuraly earns that spot for his efforts in the playoffs.
However, it will mean an additional center spot is going spare and it’s the 21 year-old’s for the taking. It just requires an impressive showing at the Boston Bruins’ training camp.
Whilst it’s not always ideal to blood a new player, especially a young one, on the fourth line, gone are the days that the fourth line is just goons and guys that are good for about six minutes a night. The fourth line that took the Boston Bruins all thew way to the Stanley Cup Final this past season is proof of that change.
Look at the way that Sean Kuraly, Noel Acciari and Joakim Nordstrom played on the fourth line and it’s safe to say that a group that is purely there to make up numbers, the fourth line is no more. In fact, based on their usage, they were tantamount to at least a third line if not a second line grouping.
Hence why Charlie Coyle potentially stepping up the line-up could be so useful for Trent Frederic. He could use his size to lead a similarly successful trio; potentially with the likes of Nordstrom by his side.
Whilst there’s no guarantee of making the team, you could surmise that it’s Frederic’s spot to lose this season.