Trent Frederic was an effective two-way winger with some offensive ability and a rugged edge for the Boston Bruins. In 75 regular-season games for the Edmonton Oilers, however, Frederic is a shadow of his former self. Late last season, there were signs of improvement. Is he back? Will Oilers fans begin to see the real Frederic?
The gap
Using the final three seasons with the Bruins and his time in Edmonton, there’s a massive difference in performance for Frederic.
CategoryBostonEdmonton
TOI
11:57
10:48
Points-60
1.57
0.52
Shots-60
6.8
5.85
Shooting Pct
12.8
5.1
GF Pct
56
35
X-GF Pct
52
50
All numbers five-on-five, via Natural Stat Trick
The biggest takeaway from this overview is the expected goal share. Frederic has had some tough luck, aided by his own inability to score goals on shots taken. Frederic’s points per 60 in Edmonton would normally make him a healthy scratch or even demoted, but his long-term deal (with a no-movement clause) means he is going to play every game. So, armed with the knowledge that Frederic isn’t going anywhere, are there some positive indicators from last season?
The injury and the downbeat results
In 2023-24, Frederic posted 2.11 points per 60 at five-on-five, but that number fell to 1.03 in Boston the following year and just over half a point per 60 with Edmonton one year ago. His goal share went from 55 percent to 40 percent to 35 percent last season with the Oilers.
Frederic suffered a high-ankle sprain in February, before his trade from Boston, but his offensive output in 2024-25 was low from the start. There are two things to look at: changes in linemates and changes in foot speed.
His most common linemates in 2023-24 were Charlie Coyle, James van Riemsdyk and Morgan Geekie. Frederic and Coyle enjoyed an outstanding 73 percent goal share in 2023-24 when playing together at five-on-five. Frederic posted 2.51 points per 60 with Coyle that season, with his speed and his shot in the 78th percentile, via NHL Edge.
That’s the player the Oilers thought they were getting.
However, the 2024-25 season in Boston was never right. His shot was still in the 71st percentile, but the foot speed was now under NHL average (he went from 36.6 kph to 35.5 kph season over season). His offence floundered, his goal share dropped, and Frederic was no longer playing as often with the skill forwards in Boston.
Frederic scored 1.58 points per 60 with Coyle; disappointing but not devastating. He was eventually moved off the line as his goal share with Coyle was 38 percent (49 expected, similar to his experience with the Oilers in 2025-26).
Based on the evidence from the 2024-25 season in Boston, before the high-ankle sprain in February, Frederic was still scoring with Coyle. He was also bleeding goals at five-on-five, and his decrease in foot speed made it difficult to get to plays as it had been leading up to 2024-25. I can find no record of an earlier injury, but the dive in max foot speed indicated some real concerns for Boston surrounding Frederic.
A sliver of hope in Edmonton?
Using foot speed, goal share and individual points per 60, here’s a month-by-month look at Frederic’s 2025-26 season.
MonthMax SpeedGoal PctPoints-60
October
nil
40
0.41
November
34.96
22
0.39
December
34.96
29
0.44
January
34.96
33
0
February
35.33
33
1.17
March
35
38
1.4
April
36.43
57
0.63
All numbers five-on-five
This is a fascinating view of a player who took more than a year to find his old foot speed and catch up to the play. Frederic expressed frustration at times during the year, no doubt because living a hockey life in chase mode and never getting to the play would be difficult for a player who had success prior to the high-ankle sprain.
By the end of the regular season, Frederic was back to the 70th percentile in max speed, and his shot was hard enough to reach the 68th percentile. Those facts, along with a late-season spike in points per 60 (1.31 points per 60 in 13 games over March and April) plus some eye-popping games playing with rookie Colton Dach, gave Oilers fans hope. Frederic is himself again, or so it seems.
Mysteries remain
There are two mysteries about Frederic that the numbers don’t answer well enough. The first mystery: what happened before the high-ankle sprain in Boston that contributed to the downswing in speed and effectiveness?
News reports in late February 2025 discussed the high-ankle sprain (just before Frederic’s trade to Edmonton), but I can find no reports of anything from October through December. We would be looking for anything that could impact foot speed, and it isn’t there.
An interesting article from Fluto Shinzawa at The Athletic from Dec. 31, 2024 (just weeks before the trade) mentions speed several times. From the article: “Freddy’s biggest thing is he’s got to continue to start moving his feet and continue to move his feet when he’s playing,” interim coach Joe Sacco said. “And he has to be physical. I think that’s a big component of his. When he’s playing hard in the defensive zone — if he’s battling below the goal line and has his assignments defensively, finishing his checks, being hard on pucks, those types of things — that’s when Freddy’s game elevates.”
That quote is a perfect description of Frederic after the injury that would come weeks later and send Frederic’s career into a spiral, save for the lucrative contract signed in June 2025.
Frederic’s foot speed returned to more normal numbers late in the 2025-26 regular season, and he should be good to go this fall. However, the mystery of the 2024-25 season before the high-ankle sprain remains.
The second conundrum: what evidence has anyone found to suggest Frederic should play against elite competition? Puck IQ tracks numbers versus elites, and with notable exceptions, Frederic has not performed at a level that would suggest using him against the league’s best would be productive. That means time spent on the top two lines won’t be successful. Here’s a look at Frederic’s entire Boston and Edmonton career against elites:
YearMinsDFF PctGoal Pct
2020-21
136
50
33
2021-22
200
59
71
2022-23
204
47
87
2023-24
286
40
50
2024-25
189
44
37
2024-25
1
0
0
2025-26
176
38
24
All numbers five-on-five, via Puck IQ
The numbers here show Frederic’s peak seasons against elites came with Coyle and involved great goaltending (.985 against elites in 2022-23) by Bruins netminders. Frederic is not suited to a tough minutes role at this time in his career based on his own past.
Bottom line
Frederic appears to be healthy, and fans should see the real deal this coming season. Ideal deployment would come on a softer minutes line with a top-flight centre. If coach Mike Babcock runs Frederic with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and another veteran on a third line, that trio could outscore mid-level and lesser competition.
If the Oilers start the season in the same way Kris Knoblauch deployed Frederic on opening night (on the top line with Connor McDavid), the results are likely to be disappointing and the experiment short-lived. Frederic can be productive, but in a depth role in the bottom six based on the numbers. If he plays with the abandon displayed for years in Boston and with Dach late in the regular season with Edmonton, Oilers fans will love him despite a most difficult start to his time with the team.