Frederic Staying Busy This Offseason

BostonBruins.com - Offseason can be a relative term, just ask Trent Frederic.

In addition to agreeing to a new two-year contract with the Bruins earlier this month, the forward has kept quite busy with workouts four days a week, a trip to Scotland for his cousin's wedding, and stops in Paris and London with his family.

Oh, and a golf getaway with his buddies from junior hockey that produced his first hole-in-one.

"It was pretty cool. I didn't think I'd ever get one of those. My brother actually hit one three or four days before me and won a two-year lease on a car, so I kind of stole the thunder from him," said Frederic, who buried a nine iron on a 154-yard Par 3 at a course in Northern Michigan.

"Hit a good one. Luckily, I bought some [Titleist] Pro V1 [golf balls] that day, actually spun back and went in. It was a pretty cool one…once in a lifetime, probably."

Shortly after his triumph on the links, Frederic and the Bruins agreed to terms on a two-year contract with an annual cap hit of $2.3 million hours ahead of a scheduled arbitration hearing.

"The process was different from the entry-level contract and my last contract," said Frederic, who earned a raise on the deal that paid him $1.05 million the last two seasons. "I guess with the whole arbitration thing, it gives a little more leverage to RFAs. I'm happy with the deal. I'm glad that we settled before [the hearing]. I think [the Bruins are] happy and I'm happy, so it's all good."

Frederic is fresh off a career campaign, during which he tallied highs in goals (17), assists (14), points (31), and games played (79). The 25-year-old also saw time at all three forward positions, primarily at right wing, which has him prepared for whatever may come his way in 2023-24.

"I guess everything will kind of play out at camp," said the 6-foot-3, 214-pounder, who skated mostly with Charlie Coyle and Taylor Hall on the B's third line last season. "I don't mind playing center or wing. Last year, I played pretty much all three - left wing, center and right - so I'm comfortable playing both now or playing all three now. I actually really liked right wing last year, kind of first time doing that and really liked it…wherever I find a fit I will just try to do my best there."

With the retirement of franchise icon Patrice Bergeron and uncertainty surrounding the future of David Krejci, there will be opportunity in the middle of the ice, where Frederic found plenty of success growing up and during his time at the University of Wisconsin.

"I've pretty much been a center my whole life until the last like three years when I've been kind of in and out of center, but mostly playing wing," said the 2016 first-round pick. "I think I kind of understand the system at center the way we play. A lot of times, if you're a low forward, like when I was playing with Charlie, he always liked when I would chip in and play down low.

"I think for me, the biggest thing would be faceoffs…getting that first touch on the puck for our team will be a big factor in my success there and that's something I probably didn't do the best last year. But I think with the repetition and practice, it should be good."

With so much roster turnover, there may also be opportunity for Frederic to contribute more on special teams. The St. Louis native has contributed at times on the penalty kill over the last several years, averaging 28 seconds per game shorthanded last season, but totaled just five minutes on the power play in 2022-23.

"I would like to get involved in special teams in some way," said Frederic. "I guess that's all in my play. I'm sure with people kind of moving on or going to different teams that there should be more openings for that than there has been in the past years. I guess it will all kind of all trickle out in camp at the beginning of the year.

"It's hard just playing 5-on-5 at times because you can lose some flow in the game. Even a little bit of killing goes a long way and you're not just sitting there and getting cold. I think sometimes playing those other special teams gives you a better option than 5-on-5. It'd be awesome if I got the chance to do any of those."

Overall, Frederic is aiming to take on as much responsibility as he can as the Bruins forward group begins to evolve.

"I just try to work hard and be the best human I can be and best hockey player and try to represent the Boston Bruins the best I can," said Frederic. "That's kind of the leadership I'll try to bring. It's gonna be hard to replace Bergy and the guys that have left this summer…but we still have a really good group of guys."