For 24 hours, Matt Fraser was in limbo, having been placed on waivers by the Bruins Sunday. On Monday at noon, he found out his time in Boston was done, that he was headed to Edmonton — not far from where he grew up in Red Deer, Alberta — after the Oilers had claimed him.
His parents, too, would be headed back to Edmonton after flying from that city to Boston Sunday to spend time with their son.
It was a rough period, Fraser said, especially for his mother.
“It’s not easy,” said the 24-year-old winger. “No one likes to kind of feel unwanted and no one likes that level of uncertainty. I talked to my agent probably four or five times in the past 24 hours, and that’s more times than I probably have in a whole year. You just wait to get that call.
“You get a call and all of a sudden your life’s changed and you’re going back home. It’s part of this game. That’s what we sign up for. This is a business and we’re interchangeable parts.”
The move to the Oilers could bring with it more opportunity, which Fraser never really got in Boston. He came to the Bruins as part of the Loui Eriksson/Tyler Seguin deal in July 2013, and spent most of last season in Providence.
His most notable moment with the Bruins came in the playoffs last season, when he scored the winning overtime goal in Game 4 against the Canadiens in a series he played on a broken foot.
He saw the ice in 24 games for the Bruins this season, scoring three goals, including two in one game in which he replaced David Krejci minutes before game time.
But he never really seemed to get a true shot.
“I’m never going to blame anybody else but myself,” Fraser said. “I would have liked to produce more, but maybe the opportunity wasn’t there as much.
“I just had a conversation with Claude [Julien] and he kind of alluded to that, but at the same time, you’re in the NHL for a reason and you’ve got to find a reason to stay here.”
With Fraser heading to the Oilers and the Bruins without Milan Lucic and Patrice Bergeron Monday night against the Red Wings, they had to call up Matt Lindblad from Providence earlier in the day. They had called up Jordan Caron Sunday.
The left-shot Fraser was used mostly as a right wing this season, perhaps not the optimal spot for him, but it was the only spot open on the Bruins. He had seen much of his time as a bottom-six forward, on the fourth line, though he also did a stint with Eriksson and Carl Soderberg.
That didn’t allow Fraser to use his best asset, his powerful shot, very often. He had just 29 shots on goal in his 24 games this season.
“I think that comes with the opportunity, but at the same time you’ve got to make your opportunities, you’ve got to show what you can, so they say, ‘Yeah, we want him in the lineup,’ ” Fraser said.
“A lot of developing in this league and establishing yourself in this league is about having the right opportunity, being in the right place at the right time.”
He might have that chance with the Oilers.
“I think I’m still kind of in the shock and awe of it,” Fraser said.
“This is such a great team to be part of, such great guys to be part of. It’s tough leaving, but at the same time, hopefully there’s an opportunity for me in Edmonton.”
Caron on offensive
The nine goals Caron has scored this season in Providence are a change for the forward. No longer is he being asked to play a primarily defensive role — the role he’s been in most over the years in Boston. Instead, he has been playing with Alexander Khokhlachev and David Pastrnak on the Baby Bruins’ top line.
“I think it’s probably the first time that I have had an offensive role since I’ve been a pro, so I’ve been creating a lot of offense and focusing on my offensive game a lot,” Caron said. “I think that’s helping me with my confidence and stuff like that. Our line down there with Koko and Pasta has been playing really good, so I’ve felt pretty confident.”
Caron has 10 assists to go along with those nine goals in 23 games. He had 11 goals and seven assists in 47 games in Providence last season. His highest offensive output came in 2010-11, when he had 12 goals and 16 assists in the AHL and three goals and four assists in the NHL. He could certain surpass those numbers this season.
“Just focusing on becoming a better hockey player and keep improving offensively,” Caron said. “I didn’t really know what to expect when I went down there, like how it was going to be, but I think [coach] Bruce [Cassidy] did a really good job with letting me play and the same thing with Pastrnak and Khokhlachev.
“He’s given us confidence to create offense. We still have to be solid defensively, but he gave us pretty much a green light offensively to try stuff, so I think he was a big part of us playing well and he really helped me getting my confidence back.”
Line dancing
With Bergeron and Lucic out — called “day to day” by Julien — that meant that the coach had to shuffle his lines once again. This time Krejci ended up in Bergeron’s place, centering Brad Marchand and Reilly Smith. “I think I’ve played with probably every other forward except Krech,” said Smith, who scored the Bruins’ first goal in their 5-2 win. “[Krejci’s] a talented player and he creates a lot of space, so it should be fun.” . . . The absences of Lucic and Bergeron left just six players who have played in all 37 games this season: Dennis Seidenberg, Dougie Hamilton, Daniel Paille, Eriksson, Soderberg, and Smith . . . Pastrnak had two assists and scored a breakaway game-winner in overtime as the Czech Republic defeated Denmark Monday in a Group B game at the World Juniors.
Amalie Benjamin can be reached at abenjamin@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @amaliebenjamin.