Trent Frederic (born February 11, 1998) is an American professional ice hockey forward for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Bruins selected him in the first round, 29th overall, of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.
Born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, Frederic was a childhood fan of the St. Louis Blues NHL team, and his childhood coaches included former Blues players Keith Tkachuk and David Backes. After two seasons at De Smet Jesuit High School, he was recruited for the USA Hockey National Team Development Program in 2013, with whom he appeared in multiple international tournaments, including the World U-17 Hockey Challenge and IIHF World U18 Championship. While with the USA Hockey program, Frederic committed to join the Wisconsin Badgers college ice hockey program for their 2016–17 season. The Badgers lost the Big Ten Conference championships both seasons Frederic was there, but he scored 15 and 17 goals in those two seasons, respectively. After his sophomore year, Frederic chose to leave Wisconsin in order to sign with the Bruins.
Frederic's push to become the Bruins' third-line center in the season did not work out: he had a chance at the role in February 2019, but was sent back down to the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League (AHL) after 11 scoreless outings. Frederic remained with Providence for the season, save for two NHL games in place of an injured Zachary Senyshyn, and had 32 AHL points by the time that the COVID-19 pandemic brought the season to a premature end. Frederic had a permanent position in the Bruins' NHL roster the following season until he contracted a mysterious illness in April, after which he was used only sparingly.
Early life
Frederic was born on February 11, 1998, in St. Louis, Missouri, to Bob and Gaye Frederic, both lifelong fans of the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). Raised a Blues fan, Frederic's favorite hockey players as a child were Keith Tkachuk and David Backes, and as he began playing hockey himself, he would model his playing style after that of Backes. He played three sports throughout his childhood, all of which were coached by former professionals: Frederic's hockey coaches were Tkachuk and Jeff Brown, the quarterback coach on his American football team was Gus Frerotte, and Mike Matheny coached him in Little League Baseball. Frederic spent two years as a three-sport athlete for De Smet Jesuit High School before October 2013, when the USA Hockey National Team Development Program noticed him at a minor ice hockey tournament and recruited him for their program. He spent two years in the development program, scoring seven goals and 12 assists for a total of 19 points in 58 United States Hockey League games.
Playing career
NCAA
On April 18, 2014, Frederic committed to play college ice hockey for the Wisconsin Badgers beginning in the 2016–17 season. The summer before joining the Badgers, Frederic, who had previously been recruited by the Boston University Terriers, was selected by the Boston Bruins in the first round, 29th overall, of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. Despite being drafted, Frederic committed to Wisconsin, and he scored his first collegiate goal on October 8, 2016, as part of a 6–5 defeat of the Northern Michigan Wildcats. With six points in his first four games, including a four-point game against the Boston College Eagles, Frederic was named the Big Ten Conference's Second Star of the Week for the week ending October 18. After breaking his hand in practice on November 17, the Badgers' goals per game dropped from 3.75 in the eight games he had played to 2.67 in the six games he missed. Centering a line with Cameron Hughes and Luke Kunin, Frederic was second to Kunin with 15 goals and 33 points in 30 regular season games. Although the Badgers lost the Big Ten tournament to Penn State in double overtime, thus keeping them out of the NCAA tournament, Frederic was named the Big Ten Men's Ice Hockey Freshman of the Year, as well as the recipient of the Spike Carlson–Chris Chelios Award for the Badgers' most valuable player (MVP). He was also named to both the All-Big Ten Second Team and Freshman Team.