Frederic Embracing Competition As Rookie Camp Begins

2018 Boston Bruins Rookie Camp is presented by AT&T
BOSTON - Classes started on Wednesday at the University of Wisconsin, but would-be junior Trent Frederic was miles away enjoying a different type of first-day excitement.
The St. Louis-native participated in the first day of Bruins Rookie Camp at Warrior Ice Arena. This is Frederic's first such camp, having chosen to forgo his last two years at Wisconsin in April when he signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Bruins.

His focus now is on the future, as he's hungry to make the varsity roster this season.
"Yeah, obviously that's my goal," said Frederic, who was absent from Development Camp in June, making Thursday his first official skate with the team since signing in the spring. "That's why I decided to leave college early, to play in the NHL and give my best whack at it. At the end of the day, I'll go to sleep and do it again, and whenever they think it's time for me to get a chance, that's what I'll do. I'll try to make it hard for them to not turn me down."

The center comes to Boston after two very successful seasons at Wisconsin. He was named 2016-17 Big Ten Freshman of the Year, tallying 33 points (15 goals, 18 assists) in 30 games. The 20-year-old didn't slow up heading into his second year, leading the Badgers in scoring during the 2017-18 season with 17 goals and nine multi-point games in 36 games played. He also owned the team's best faceoff percentage (52.9%).
Frederic finished out last season playing 13 games with the Providence Bruins, recording five goals and three assists. Providence coach Jay Leach, who is also heading up this year's Rookie Camp, sees a lot of potential in Frederic.
"Freddy is a little bit old school in that he's in your face," said Leach. "He's not afraid to get at you. He's not afraid of confrontation. He'll show that at any level. He came to us and went right after a guy in Lehigh the second night I think he played. He's got the ability to skate, he's got some hands."
Frederic, along with the rest of the Bruins' rookie camp roster, is headed to the Prospects Challenge in Buffalo this weekend, where Leach is excited to see his continued growth during game action.
"A little raw when he came to us [in April]," said Leach, "but within four weeks it was as if we were seeing a pro player. He's got a huge upside and is a lot of fun to watch, to be honest with you."

Bruins fans got a taste of the prospect's potential during the 2018 World Junior Championship, where he earned a bronze medal while representing Team USA in Buffalo. In the bronze-medal game against the Czech Republic, Frederic scored four goals en route to the team's 9-3 victory.
That play-making ability - as well as his skills as a checking, 200-foot center - has put him in contention for the Bruins' vacant third-line center spot, along with fellow prospects Jack Studnicka and Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson.
All three pivots are headed to China next week for the O.R.G. NHL China Games, but rather than compare himself to his peers, Frederic is focusing on his own game and how he can make the best impression during training camp.
"That's one of the reasons I decided it was maybe a good time to come here," said Frederic. "There's an opportunity. I'm going to give it my all and hopefully I'll make it out. I've been working out here [at Warrior] in the last couple of weeks, meeting guys, getting names down, becoming familiar with them… hopefully this China trip does a similar thing. I'm pretty excited about it."