BOSTON — Bruins forward Trent Frederic begged Oilers forward Corey Perry to drop the gloves with him midway through the second period on Tuesday night.
There was some hesitancy from Perry, but Frederic got what he wanted.
After the two had a lengthy exchange along the boards, Frederic and Perry went at it at center ice. The result? A decisive knockdown victory for Frederic. Frederic pummeled the 39-year-old Perry with repeated punches. Frederic connected so many times with his fists that he bloodied his knuckles. You can watch the fight here.
Frederic, who received a roughing penalty to go along with his fighting major, might have needed to blow off some steam with the fight or it could have been a calculated decision. Perhaps Frederic tried to inject some life into the Bruins after a lackluster start.
It seemed to work, but mere moments after Pavel Zacha missed a strong scoring opportunity, Oilers superstar Connor McDavid scored on a breakaway to give Edmonton a 2-0 lead with 8:49 remaining in the second period.
And just like that, any momentum Frederic created by winning his bout was lost.
