Sam Carrick has been big factor in Rangers’ turnaround push: ‘heart-and-soul guy’

SALT LAKE CITY — Sam Carrick has stepped into the spotlight amid the Rangers’ push to turn their season around.

Coming off his first two-point game as a Ranger, after scoring the team’s first goal and notching an assist on Adam Edstrom’s go-ahead score in the second of the Rangers’ 3-2 overtime loss to the Avalanche on Tuesday, Carrick made it three goals — and four points — in the past six games.

If you ask his Rangers teammates, however, they’ll tell you his impact has been felt since Day 1.

Sam Carrick scores a goal during the Rangers’ loss to the Avalanche on Jan. 14, 2025. Getty Images

“He’s a heart-and-soul guy for us,” Braden Schneider said Tuesday night. “He kills penalties hard. He plays and works in the defensive zone hard. He has the skill to make things happen offensively. I thought that shorthanded goal he got [Tuesday night] was a perfect example of working for your chances and it was a sweet goal and a sweet move to cap it off. I think he’s been playing amazing and it’s great to see because he brings it every night.

“He might not always be on the scoreboard like he was [Tuesday night], but he’s always there and being a positive difference for us.”

The Rangers signed Carrick to a three-year, $3 million deal in the offseason to fill the void left by Barclay Goodrow, who was waived in a cap-clearing move in June.

For over $2.6 million less annually, Carrick was tasked with replacing not only an alternate captain of the Rangers, but a utility forward whose versatility is one of his greatest assets.

Coming off a run to the Stanley Cup with the Oilers, who acquired the 32-year-old from the Ducks along with Adam Henrique, Carrick got his first taste of the NHL playoffs in his ninth professional season.

Sam Carrick handles the puck during the Rangers’ loss to the Avalanche. NHLI via Getty Images

It’s probable that the prospect of another postseason run played a factor in his coming to New York.

Carrick has been a soldier for the Rangers on a game-to-game basis, injecting some much-needed physicality, snarl and forechecking into the bottom six and buckling down on the penalty kill.

His 1:17 of average shorthanded ice time is good for fifth among Rangers forwards. He’s been on the ice for just two power play goals against thus far.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST NHL STANDINGS AND RANGERS STATS

In addition to boasting a 66.67 faceoff win percentage on the power play, Carrick’s all-encompassing 57.4 mark from the dot is the second-best on the team behind only Vincent Trocheck (60.6).

“He’s a guy that plays the game hard,” head coach Peter Laviolette said after an optional practice at the Olympic Oval on Wednesday afternoon. “He hits, he competes, he’ll fight for his teammates, he’ll block shots. When you see him score a goal the way he did [Tuesday night], especially the type of goal that it was, everybody’s jazzed up for him. He’s playing really well right now, which is awesome.”

Tuesday night, Carrick scored his fourth shorthanded goal and recorded the fifth multipoint game of his career. It gave Carrick 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in 43 games this season.

The points have been a bonus, but a player like Carrick finding success is beneficial for the morale in the room, too.

Everybody likes to glow about one of the hardest working players on the team finally getting rewarded.

“I think he does his job well,” Jimmy Vesey said. “It’s not always an easy task being a fourth-line center, but he’s good on draws, plays physical and is responsible. Underrated. I think he has a lot of poise with the puck and that’s shown through a little bit more lately.

“He’s a tough kid. Not shy to either lay a hit or get involved in a scrum. Definitely an asset on our team.”