NHL: Boston Bruins at Seattle Kraken - Source: Imagn — NHL insider Elliotte Friedman talked about Bruins and Trent Frederic's situation (Source: Imagn)

Elliotte Friedman makes his thoughts on Bruins' Trent Frederic trade speculation crystal clear

Modified Dec 16, 2024 17:49 GMT

On Monday, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman shared his thoughts on trade speculation surrounding Boston Bruins forward Trent Frederic. Speaking with co-host Kyle Bukauskas on "32 Thoughts Podcast," Friedman shared that some teams believe Boston and Frederic might not agree on a new contract.

"There are definitely some teams out there that feel that the Bruins and Frederic won't be able to get a deal done," Friedman said.

However, Friedman believes there is no immediate deadline, as the trade deadline is still months away.

Friedman referenced Boston's GM Don Sweeney’s earlier comments, which confirmed talks with Frederic and other key players.

"He (Sweeney) said 'We started talking to our other free agents', and so we know they were talking to Marchand, and it hasn't happened yet, and we knew they were talking to Frederic, and it hasn't happened yet, so there's a little bit of uncertainty." Friedman said.

"He's the kind of player that playoff teams are going to want. They're really going to want a guy like that. He's a good teammate, he's competitive." Friedman added.

"I know in Winnipeg, they weren't happy with him last week, and to be honest, I wasn't crazy about that either. But generally he's a very popular teammate and a willing combatant, and so I think there's a lot of interest in him."

Frederic has been a tad underwhelming on offense for Boston this season. In 32 games, he has five goals and six assists for 11 points, with a troubling -13 plus-minus. Frederic, known for his tough style, has 28 penalty minutes and an average ice time of more than 14 minutes per game.

Boston Bruins are struggling with inconsistency

The Boston Bruins are inconsistent this season with a record of 16-13-3, sitting third in the Atlantic Division. Their offense has struggled, scoring only 2.56 goals per game, despite David Pastrnak leading with 32 points.

Special teams are also a concern as they have a power play success rate of just 13% (31st in the NHL). The team has shown promise in some games but struggled in others, losing heavily to teams like Winnipeg (8-1) and Carolina (8-2).

Their struggles, particularly on the power play, add urgency to decisions about players like Frederic as the Bruins evaluate their path forward.