If you had to make a determination, where is Frederic better suited? As a winger (LWer most likely) or a center?
Could he be part of the solution to adding size/grit strength to the 4th line next year either as a winger or C?
If he should be a C, is he better off in Providence next year or could he be the 4th line C in Boston, either pushing Kuraly to the wing of L4 or L3?
Whenever I saw Frederic, Justin Abdelkader was the player he reminded me of, a mid-tier power winger.
Abdelkader was a bit clunky on the ice whereas Frederic is smooth and much, much more athletic than he was, IMO.
I think he’s best suited at center though. Whenever Frederic played wing, closer to the start of the season, he wasn’t as engaged or commanding on the ice. Which makes sense given that he’d be able to play looser on wing than center, where he’d have to be “with it” at all times.
My ideal fourth-line in Boston next year would be Kuraly-Frederic-Kuhlman for many reasons. One being that Nordstrom should walk as they have pieces in Providence to play that role, whether it be Kuhlman or even Cameron Hughes. And another because I think Kuraly has been struggling for quite a bit now and playing wing might help him out.
Having a fourth-line of three fast, quick and athletic players vs Nordstrom-Kuraly-Wagner would be ideal, IMO. I know it won’t happen because Wagner got signed and is the “Mayor” or whatever, but I truthfully think Kuhlman is a better player across all three zones.
Frederic isn’t the same player we saw play 15 games for Providence. He’s faster, slimmer and more authoritative on the ice. I spoke to Leach a couple of times post-media talk last season and he spoke candidly about how working with Frederic was about reiterating he has the physical tools to completely take over a game— it worked.
As others can attest, Frederic went on an absolutely dominate tear somewhere between January and the end of the season before the stoppage. Fighting, passing, shooting, scoring, hitting and everything else. Absolute beast.
I know it’s a high bar to set and I’m not saying he’ll be this player, but a Tom Wilson-lite type of guy is what I see Frederic as. Someone who’s got the speed, agility and skating to keep up with most players on the ice, regardless of lines, but the physical tools to just bully them.
You can rewatch any shift he took from January on last year and see him just be a man amongst boys even in the AHL. The dude is mean and won’t hesitate to bully you or throw a questionable hit or just kind of take over. He’s got the skills of a second-line player, he’s just not as naturally creative as your typical playmaker. He’s still creative, just not that type of player that’s all. Kind of like Brayden Schenn in that regard. Talented, but not the typical creativity you’d expect in that position.
Frederic is still young too. It took Wilson how many seasons to fully take over in the NHL as he is today? I think letting him marinate as the fourth-line center to start out next season would be awesome, if unrealistic given what we currently know about this roster, salary, waivers and god knows what else.