If you're waiting with bated breath for Trent Frederic to play, be patient, that day is coming.
The Boston Bruins have two wingers, Brad Marchand and Craig Smith, listed as game-time decisions for Thursday's game against the New Jersey Devils. Both took part in morning skate, and provided they play, Frederic's season debut will have to wait.
But even if it's not Thursday, Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy hinted we might see Frederic at some point.
"Depending on the lineup -- we have a plan in place, I don't want to get ahead of myself because (I don't want to) take a guy out ahead of time," Cassidy said Thursday afternoon over Zoom. "But yes, he's penciled in to get in there, and we want to see what he can do, as well. So there might be -- I don't want to call it a platoon -- but a situation where we're going to use him, we're not going to let him sit for extended periods of time."
Clearly there's some trust in the 22-year-old, as the Bruins risked Par Lindholm to waivers instead of sending down the waiver-exempt Frederic.
Steadily improving offensively over the last few seasons, the 2016 first-round pick brings a bruising style of play and is willing to drop the gloves when necessary. He is a natural center, but his path to playing in the NHL for now likely will be on the wings.
But at the moment, he's the de facto 13th forward, though he should get plenty of opportunities to seize a spot in due course.
