Ali-Frazier. Ward-Gatti. Frederic-Lemieux?
Boston Bruins forward Trent Frederic and Los Angeles Kings forward Brendan Lemieux turned their rivalry into a trilogy Thursday night, dropping the gloves for the third time in the last three seasons.
This bout came with 7:29 left in the second period and the game tied 2-2. Right off a faceoff, Frederic (listed at 6-foot-3, 214 pounds) and Lemieux (6-foot-1, 215 pounds) squared off. After a little bit of dancing and sizing each other up, the two came together and began wildly throwing haymakers, with both landing a few good punches. In the end, neither was able to get the takedown.
The two also fought on Feb. 12, 2021 (when Lemieux was with the New York Rangers) and Feb. 8, 2022. Both of those fights went similarly -- wild swings, a couple connections, no clear winner.
Lemieux, who is the son of former Bruins rival Claude Lemieux, had to go to the Kings dressing room for some repairs after Thursday's fight. He had lined up Charlie McAvoy for a big hit earlier in the game, but given his and Frederic's history, Round 3 may very well have happened even without that.
“He was kind of running around in the first, so I definitely thought about it,” Frederic told NESN after the game. “When he came up to me, I can’t ever say no to him. I’m not a big fan of him, so every chance I get, I try to do it.”
Frederic would make his and the Bruins' night even better in the third period, scoring twice to lead Boston to a 5-2 win. He now has a career-high nine goals on the season.
Watch Thursday's fight below:
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