Trent Frederic is back on the shelf after reaggravating an ankle injury Saturday against the Los Angeles Kings, Sportsnet’s Mark Spector reported Monday. 

That game was Frederic’s debut with the Oilers after the team acquired him on March 4th from the Boston Bruins. Frederic had suffered a high-ankle sprain prior to the trade, missing three of the Bruins’ games.

Frederic had been rehabilitating the injury since he arrived in Edmonton, eager to get on the ice and make an impact. He was on the ice for the opening faceoff against the Kings, laying a hit on Kings defenceman Brandt Clarke, only to pull up limp. He would stay in the game, playing 7:10, taking two shots, laying a pair of hits, and getting into the Kings’ crease, just as the team expected from him when they acquired him.

His debut was supposed to be tonight against the Anaheim Ducks — a game he’ll now miss — but after Leon Drasiaitl was injured in Thursday’s game against the San Jose Sharks, Frederic was thrust into the lineup.

The good news is Frederic looked good in his limited minutes, but high-ankle sprains can be difficult to overcome. Just ask Draisaitl, who played through the 2022 playoffs with one.

Frederic not being able to go on Monday means the Oilers will likely be playing a man short. Sportsnet’s Mark Spector reported that Draisaitl was on the ice for morning skate, taking a few line rushes, but wasn’t taking part in power play drills. Despite that, Spector doesn’t expect Draisaitl to play.

As noted by our own Jason Gregor, the Oilers don’t have the cap space to recall a player from the Condors, either, and teams can’t use an emergency recall until they play one game with 17 skates before it can be used.

With injuries to Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, Mattias Ekholm, Stuart Skinner, John Klingberg, and Evander Kane, things have been rough for the Oilers as of late.

They take on the Ducks tonight with an 8:30 PM MST start.

Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.