Oilers notebook: Did Trent Frederic come back from injury too soon?

While Trent Frederic was certainly noticeable in his first Edmonton Oilers’ game Saturday in Los Angeles —it’s easy to love guys who show up to play in ill-humour and are disliked by the opposing side — we also noticed he didn’t play a shift in the last 15 minutes in what was only a 2-0 Kings lead.

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That might be a red flag.

Frederic was in Kings’ goalie Darcy Kuemper’s grill a couple of times in scrambles and was physical as expected but also missed 12 minutes in the first period after an awkward looking hit along the boards and his last shift of the third was at 5:09.

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Coming back from his high ankle sprain, and wanting to play with the Oilers only having 11 healthy forwards, he gutted it out through seven minutes. But, maybe he shouldn’t be playing quite yet, where the team has to clearly balance getting him some adjusting to a new team some action before playoffs (just six games left) and Frederic maybe compromised on a sore foot.

“I couldn’t comment on where he is, or exactly how he’s feeling right now,” said Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch, whose team had a day off Sunday with the last game of the road trip in Anaheim Monday.

“We definitely want to be cautious. There’s a difference between regular-season and playoffs (when everybody plays hurt).

“I haven’t heard of any injury. I still haven’t talked to our medical staff.”

Nevertheless, he didn’t get him off the bench but for two shifts in the third period against the Kings and only down two goals.

Maybe Oilers were just playing it safe with Frederic in LA. But ankle sprains are always tricky business and if he can’t play in Anaheim, the Oilers will likely have to recall a forward from Bakersfield, although that would mean three games in three days for any warm body up from the farm. The AHL Condors have a Saturday-Sunday matchup in Tucson for the seventh and last Pacific Division playoff spot.

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Welcome to NHL moment

Unless there’s a late change of mind, goalie Olivier Rodrigue will be getting his first NHL start with the game in Anaheim as they give Calvin Pickard, who has started five straight with Stu Skinner (concussion) out, a little breather.

Pickard has given up just eight goals in the last four starts but the Oilers seem locked into third in the Pacific division so why not give Rodrigue, 24, an NHL starting debut after 145 minor-league games?.

If Rodrigue starts in Anaheim, hopefully his dad Sylvain, now the goalie coach of Florida’s AHL affiliate (Charlotte), can fly in for the game to watch his son. Sylvain was the long-time Bakersfield goalie instructor.

Take a deep breath

Two-time Oilers Stanley Cup winning defenceman Don Jackson, the much-decorated head coach in Germany for years (Berlin and Munich) who briefly left his position as head of coaching development for Munich Red Bull in January to step back behind the bench there, was certainly interested in his old NHL team’s signing of German free-agent centre Josh Samanski.

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While at least 10 NHL teams were trying to sign the 22-year-old right-shot pivot after his fourth year with DEL Straubing Tigers, Jackson’s scouting report on the youngster smacks of pump-the-brakes stuff, though. He will need some North American seasoning. He’s not jumping right to the NHL.

“Josh is a big guy who skates well, a hard-worker who has improved his game the last three years in the DEL. His scoring has picked up. He could be a late bloomer to produce. This (signing) is definitely an opportunity for Josh to make his mark somewhere in North America,” said Jackson, 68, who was in town last October when his old D partner Randy Gregg got into the Oilers’ Wall of Fame.

High praise for Tomasek

Uffe Bodin, once a player in Sweden, and also former editor of HockeySverige, is a fan of recent Oilers free-agent signee David Tomasek after watching the Czech-born centre closely the last two years in the SHL with Farjestads. He was the best goal-scorer in the league last season and the top point-getter this year.

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“Really skilled centre. High hockey IQ, who can both act as a scorer and a playmaker. It will be interesting to see how his play translates to the small rink in North America at the age of 29,” said Bodin, remembering Derek Ryan also winning the scoring title in Sweden, then signing a pro contract with Carolina, but morphing into a bottom six NHLer.

“I’m not sure he’s a Derek Ryan who managed to go from an offensive player (scoring champion) in Sweden to role player in the NHL. Tomasek feels like a guy who needs a top six role to be successful and that’s obviously a tough ask considering the level of talent the Oilers have now.”

Signing older Euro free-agents is always hit or miss.

Remember Jiri Dopita? Yeah, we hardly knew ye.

The Flyers brought over the Czech star centre at 33, then the Oilers got him. He was big and had skill but his foot-speed wasn’t NHL level. He only played 73 games.

The Swiss-born centre Pius Suter came to the NHL at 25 and has been very good. But fellow Swiss forward Damien Brunner only lasted 125 games, coming over at 26.

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Both sides are happy

When the Kings amazingly found a willing Washington taker for centre Pierre-Luc Dubois, with seven years left on his $8.5 million AAV contract last June, and took on Kuemper, who had lost his No. 1 spot to Charlie Lindgren in 2023-2024, most people wondered about both guys. Now, 10 months later, it’s been a feel-good story for both sides, and you don’t always get that.

After throwing out Joonas Korpisalo, then Cam Talbot against the Oilers in the playoffs, they likely feel much better with Kuemper, with his five shutouts and a 2.01 goals-against average, and 28 wins. When they likely play the Oilers in round one of the playoffs for a fourth straight year, they’ll have Kuemper who’s given up one goal in two starts to the Oilers this season.

There was a short Kings history with Kuemper, who grew up in Lloydminster, in 2017-2018 when he played 19 games behind Jonathan Quick, but he was traded to Arizona that season for Tobias Reider and goalie Scott Wedgewood. Ex Oilers Cup winner Billy Ranford, currently Kings’ organizational goalie coach, worked with Kuemper as Kings goalie tutor back then.

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“Once we started talking about specific destinations (for Dubois), a lot then goes into our goalie department. They’re the experts, they understand the goalies,” Kings’ GM Rob Blake told Kings insider Zach Dooley last June.

The Oilers, as we all know, had a flirtation with Kuemper back in 2021 to pair him with Mike Smith but didn’t get him. The Coyotes traded Kuemper to Colorado where he won his Stanley Cup ring.

Kuemper has two years left after this one at $5.25 million AAV) so the Kings used the yearly cap savings in the Dubois-Kuemper swap ($3.25 million AAV) to sign ex Oiler Warren Foegele at $3.5 million AAV. Foegele leads the Kings at plus 32 with 41 of his career-high 43 points even-strength.

This ‘n that

Would have been interesting seeing ex Oiler Dylan Holloway (63 points) Wednesday when the Blues are in town but after suffering an undisclosed injury on a hit by Penguins rookie forward Rutger McGroarty on Thursday, he’s now out week to week. So likely scratch him from the opening of the playoffs in two weeks.

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Remarkably the Blues are 13-1-1 without their best defenceman Colton Parayko, who played well for Canada at the 4 Nations Face-off.

Parayko, who grew up in St. Albert, hurt his left knee a month ago but should be ready to start the playoffs.

After a good season in junior with the Ontario Hockey League’s Flint Firebirds, where he was their team MVP, the Oilers signed goalie Nathaniel Day to an NHL entry deal. Day, a sixth-round pick in 2023 could be back in Flint as an overager next season.

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