The Edmonton Oilers are positioning themselves for the playoffs, acquiring forwards Trent Frederic and Max Jones from the Boston Bruins in a multiteam trade on Tuesday.
New Jersey is the third-party facilitator of the transaction. The Devils retained 50% of Frederic's salary in the deal, sending Boston the rights to unsigned draft choice Petr Hauser and receiving unsigned draft choice Shane Lachance from Edmonton.
The Bruins subsequently traded Jones and Hauser to Edmonton for prospect Max Wanner, St. Louis' second-round pick in 2025 (belonging to Edmonton) and the Oilers' own fourth-round selection in 2026.
The NHL trade deadline is Friday.
Frederic is the centerpiece of the trade, though. The 6-foot-3 winger is a physical scorer who's strong on the forecheck, contributes on the penalty kill and adds some bottom-six depth for Edmonton going into the postseason. The Oilers will have to wait for him though since Frederic was put on injured reserve with a lower-body injury and is considered week-to-week. He was hurt a week ago against Toronto.
The 27-year-old was Boston's first-round pick (29th overall) in 2016 but has struggled to find his place in the organization. Frederic has just eight goals and 15 points in 57 games this season for a Bruins team still fighting to stay in playoff contention. He's also a pending unrestricted free agent this summer, further incentivizing Boston to capitalize on the trade market.
This could be the first move of the Bruins being sellers at the deadline for the first time in a long time. They are currently two points out of the final wild-card spot. The big question mark is what happens to captain Brad Marchand. He is also currently injured and talking to the team about a new contract. But he could be moved if nothing materializes.
Jones will offer the Oilers some insurance as well. He has played most of this year in the American Hockey League but could be another depth option for the Oilers if needed.
Edmonton is currently second in the Pacific Division.
