Bruins forward Trent Frederic did not have a good training camp. In fact, the 25-year-old winger didn’t even make the opening night lineup — he was a healthy scratch.
“I think you have to give him a lot of credit. He’s very honest with his performance and that’s been true all year,” Boston head coach Jim Montgomery told reports after Saturday’s morning skate. “He said that he didn’t have the greatest camp and was not surprised that he wasn’t starting here.”
Frederic was a player at the beginning of the season fans were calling for to be sent to Providence and have either Jakub Lauko or Marc McLaughlin be in Boston.
“I give him credit and how he’s worked at the pace of his game and his transition, like when he’s transitioning from offense to defense right away and vice versa,” Montgomery said. “He jumps out at you about how well he’s playing, you know. … You got a really good hockey player. Really good hockey player that he’s blossomed into.”
In 75 games this seaon, Frederic has put up career highs in goals (16), assists (14) and points (30) and has earned his spot on the third line. His previous career totals were eight goals and 10 assists for 18 points.
Frederic, along with Charlie Coyle, will welcome back linemate Taylor Hall when they faceoff against the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.
“They’ve been one of our most effective lines all year,” Montgomery said.
The Bruins are chasing history when they face the Devils at TD Garden. With 61 wins on the season, the Black and Gold are one win shy of the all-time wins record of 62 set by the 1995-96 Detroit Red Wings and duplicated by the 2018-19 Tampa Bay Lightning.
