Trent Frederic spent his off day on Wednesday strolling around his old stomping ground in South Boston before meeting some of his former teammates for dinner.

And on the day he was to face his old mates at the Garden, the now-Edmonton Oiler cut one of his last official ties to the city of Boston, finalizing the sale of his condo in Southie.

“Yeah, I took a loss on it,” said Frederic with a laugh. “Giving back to the community.”

Frederic, who was selected in the first round of the 2016 draft (29th overall) of 2016 draft by the Bruins and spent eight seasons in the organization, was the first player to be shipped out of town in the B’s fire sale last season. Soon Justin Brazeau, Charlie Coyle, Brandon Carlo and finally captain Brad Marchand would be given their tickets out of town as the B’s began their rebuild-on-the-fly.

While being traded from the only pro organization you were ever a part of carries some level of shock, Frederic in the back of his mind knew that it was a distinct possibility. He was nursing a bad ankle sprain and he was on an expiring contract.

“I had a feeling it could happen with the way the year was going,” said Frederic after the Oilers’ morning skate at the Garden. “I kind of figured. I was probably done for the year, or the regular season. It didn’t sound like we were going to get a deal going, so I just put the two together.”

The trade has worked out well for him. He part of the Oilers’ run to the Stanley Cup final, losing to Marchand’s Panthers in the end.

“He deserved it and he played well,” said Frederic of Marchand. “If you can get anything positive out of that, it was to see him win. I saw all the work he put in throughout the years, so it’s cool for him.”

The B’s traded Frederic along with Max Jones in a complicated three-way deal that ultimately netted them a 2025 second round pick, a 2026 fourth rounder and minor league defenseman Max Wanner.

While he had an inkling he’d get traded, the level of upheaval the B’s then undertook was a little surprising.

“I guess everyone was probably a little surprised when someone like March goes, and Brando and CC,” said Frederic, sporting a stitched-up gash under his eye, courtesy of friendly fire from Andrew Mangiapane’s practice shot. “Those were big-name guys and big core group. But they were trying to do what’s best for them and it seems like the Bruins are doing very well right now.”

Not only was Frederic part of the run to the finals, Edmonton liked him enough to sign him to a whopping eight-year extension worth $3.85 million a season.

But carving out a long-term role has been more difficult. He started the season playing in the top six, but has since been dropped lower in the lineup. He’s got just two goals and one assist in 34 games prior to Thursday’s tilt.

“I think I’m still trying to figure that out,” said Frederic of his role. “I don’t know what I’ve created for myself. I didn’t have a great start but there’s still a lot of season left.”

Coach Kris Knoblauch said it’s still a work in progress

“It’s been changed quite a bit from the start of the season, and it has for a lot of guys,” said Knoblauch of Frederic’s role. “For Trent Frederic, it’s being on the third or fourth line, giving us some physicality, being an all-around good player. Any time a new player joins a team, there’s always an adjustment period. Sometimes that takes two weeks, sometimes it takes two months, sometimes it doesn’t ever happen. You saw players in the past coming into Edmonton and it never being a fit. Obviously, we’re committed to Trent. We think he’s a good player. We need to find him a spot where he can help us win.”

As for his old team, Frederic was happy to see some of his old friends find success.

“They’re a hard-working group. Seems like they playing well for the new coach here,” said . Seems like everyone firing on all cylinders. It’s good to see (Morgan Geekie) is an absolute threat out there and scoring. It’s good to see.”…

Marco Sturm coached Oiler superstar Leon Draisaitl on the German national team and raved about not just his talent but his makeup.

“First of all, he’s a great guy. He has what a lot of players don’t have, that superstar mentality. When I say that, he wants to be the best every time when he’s on the ice. That’s hard to do, but he really wants it,” said Sturm. “If he could play 60 minutes a night, he would. Because he knows he can be the difference. Having that mentality every night, that’s hard to do. It’s what makes him so special. Forget about his talent, this alone, from the tournaments I had him, it’s pretty cool to see.”…

To accommodate for the Zdeno Chara number retirement ceremony, the start time for Bruins’ January 15 game against the Seattle Kraken has been pushed back to 8 pm. Fans are strongly encouraged to be in their seats by 6:10 pm for the ceremony, which will be hosted by Chara’s former Bruin teammate Andrew Ference….

Sturm does not expect any of the injured players – Jonathan Aspirot, Viktor Arvidsson, Michael Callahan, Henri Jokiharju and Matej Blumel – to be available this week. All those players skated before the team session on Thursday morning. Sturm estimated that Arvidsson is the closest to a return.