Trent Frederic enters the 2026-27 season with a lot to prove, and the numbers from last year make that impossible to ignore. In 74 games, he managed just four goals and seven points, finished with a minus-15 rating, and averaged 11:02 of ice time per night. For a player Edmonton signed to an eight-year deal carrying a $3.85 million cap hit, that kind of return was nowhere near good enough.
The Oilers brought Frederic in from the Boston Bruins at the 2025 Trade Deadline as a pending unrestricted free agent, but he barely got started in Edmonton that spring. After working his way back from a high ankle sprain, he played only one regular-season game for the Oilers in 2025.
He did appear in 22 playoff games, finishing with one goal and three assists, and that was enough for management to commit long term. So far, the contract has not looked good, and he is only heading into year two.
What Edmonton still hasn’t solved is Frederic’s role. He was supposed to bring size, heaviness and the occasional scoring touch, but last season never really lined up with that description.
The Oilers opened with him on the top line alongside Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, but that setup disappeared fast. They even tried him at centre, and that didn’t stick either.
Too much movement seemed to work against him. Frederic looked most comfortable when things were simple, but he never stayed in one spot long enough to settle in.
New head coach Mike Babcock will have a chance to change that if he keeps Frederic in a fourth-line checking role and lets that line build some trust and minutes. That kind of consistency could matter for a player who clearly needs confidence.
There’s also the penalty-killing piece, or rather the lack of it. Frederic didn’t kill penalties last season, which kept his usage limited.
He’s made it clear he’d welcome that responsibility. “I would love to have that role.
Anytime you get out there a little bit more, you feel better about yourself, and teammates feel better about you. If that’s a shot block or getting it down and out, or killing 45 seconds, I would love that opportunity,” Frederic stated in an interview on OilersNow with Bob Stauffer on Aug.
If things go sideways again, the floor is ugly. Frederic’s 2025-26 season already felt like the low point, and matching that offensive output would be a disaster.
Falling out of the lineup altogether would be even worse. Edmonton has plenty of bodies fighting for bottom-six minutes, with Mathieu Joseph, Mattias Janmark, Max Jones, Colton Dach, Josh Samanski and Isaac Howard all in the mix.
Frederic does have a full no-movement clause, but that does not keep him from the press box if others beat him out. Constant healthy scratches would be the nightmare version of this season.
The upside is more interesting. Frederic has shown he can score before, putting up 17 goals in 2022-23 and 18 goals in 2023-24 with Boston.
If he could come anywhere close to that kind of production from Edmonton’s fourth line, the contract would suddenly look a lot more reasonable. Even a 10-goal season would be a step in the right direction.
There’s also reason to think the fit could still come together. Frederic ended last season skating with Samanski and Dach, and that group started to build some chemistry.
Dach and Frederic bring the physical edge and the ability to make life miserable around the crease, while Samanski adds a smart two-way game. On paper, that has the look of a useful identity line if it can stay intact.
Frederic is 28, so this is not a player without time left to turn things around. Edmonton clearly believes there is something more there.
Now he has to show it. This is a huge season for him.
In Other News...
McDavid Trade Noise Is Back But Oilers Fans Know The Real Issue
Connor McDavid trade chatter has a way of resurfacing whenever the Oilers hit any patch of uncertainty, and this latest round came courtesy of NHL Network analyst E.J. Hradek. He floated the Flyers, Red Wings and Rangers as possible landing spots if McDavid ever left Edmonton, a list that says as much about the appetite for speculation as it does about the actual hockey realities around those teams.
For Oilers fans, the more pressing question is not which jersey McDavid might wear someday, but why the conversation keeps jumping to destinations that are not currently positioned as true contenders. There have been no substantial reports indicating he wants out of Edmonton, no confirmation of a trade path, and no real evidence to suggest this is anything more than another round of summer noise with very little backing behind it. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Babcock Could Put Several Oilers Roles Under Immediate Pressure
Mike Babcocks arrival in Edmonton figures to bring a different kind of daily pressure, one built on accountability and an insistence that every role be earned, not assumed. Leon Draisaitl, Trent Frederic, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jake Walman and Evan Bouchard are all the sort of established names who will have to get used to that standard quickly, while younger players such as Colton Dach, Matt Savoie, Isaac Howard and Josh Samanski are already in the kind of spot where nothing will be handed to them.
Babcock has never been shy about correcting players no matter where they sit on the depth chart, and that alone makes this a consequential camp story for the Oilers. It is one thing for prospects to fight for a place, but it is another when veterans have to wonder whether their usual lineup spots are as secure as they once were, especially if the coach sees a better fit elsewhere and decides to use it. [Read more 🡒]
Why Mike Babcock's Oilers Setup Could Decide Team Stability
Edmontons early look at Mike Babcocks setup has as much to do with the people around him as the man himself. The Oilers are betting that the coaching structure can keep the room steady while still getting the edge Babcock is known for, with associate coach D.J. Smith playing a central part in that mix.
For Edmonton, the interest is not just whether Babcock can get results, but whether the entire bench arrangement can hold together over time. There is always a balance to strike with a coach whose style can demand plenty from players, and the Oilers are trying to make sure that push does not tip into something harder to manage. [Read more 🡒]