Samuel Carrick earned the nickname Slammin’ Sammy for his all-action style of play that endured him to many fans during his time in Toronto.

Carrick played his junior hockey for the now-defunct Brampton Battalion of the Ontario Hockey League and caught the eye of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who selected him 144th overall in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

Having penned a three-year entry-level contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs on April 1st (really it was no joke), Carrick would turn professional later that year but found his path in Toronto halted by the NHL lockout.

There was simply no room for the rookie at the AHL level and after much scrambling, Toronto found a home for Carrick with the Idaho Steelheads, as the Leafs had no permanent affiliation with an ECHL team at the time.

In fifty games for the Steelheads, the young forward found the net on sixteen occasions and added twenty-one assists in a promising beginning.

When the lockout eventually ended and player movement began to resolve itself, Carrick found himself in the AHL for the first time during the later stages of the 2012-13 season.

Life wasn’t so easy up a rung in the ladder, however, with just a pair of goals and assists to show through nineteen games and the centre man would fail to record a point in five playoff outings.

His sophomore season was when Carrick really introduced himself properly to Toronto fans.

Fourteen goals and thirty-five points in 62 games, being utilised on both special teams and bring that aforementioned all-action style that his team-mates and Marlies fans both loved. His 115 penalty minutes included nine fights in the AHL and there was no fear of opponents who were generally bigger in size and stature than him.

The 2014 run to the Calder Cup Conference finals saw Carrick grow in stature and he finished sixth in team scoring with nine points (5-4-9) through fourteen games.

In the final year of his entry-level contract, Carrick received his first NHL recall by the Maple Leafs early into the 2014–15 season.

He made his NHL debut in a 3-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on November 1, 2014, and would go on to make sixteen appearances for Toronto that year.

A first NHL goal had to wait until March 26, 2015, when Carrick deposited the puck past Florida netminder Roberto Luongo after some delightful set-up play by Morgan Rielly.

The 2014-15 Marlies were a below-par team for the most part and only scrambled into the playoffs following an incredible stretch run.

Carrick recorded 27 points (9-18-27) in 59 outings and a further three in the playoffs (1-2-3) but Toronto would fall short against eventual Calder Cup Champions, Grand Rapids Griffins, in five games.

All brawn? Far from it as Carrick proves with this finish.

Signed to a one year contract in the summer with the ELC now having expired, the 2015-16 campaign would prove to be Carrick’s last in Toronto.
There were just three NHL appearances for the Ontario native but he thoroughly enjoyed his time in the AHL with a young crop of exciting new players surrounding him.

Carrick finished the season 8th in team scoring (16-18-34) despite suiting up on just 52 occasions and there was more playoff heartbreak as Toronto fell in the conference finals, only this time at the hands of the Hershey Bears.

Stripping his brother, Trevor, of the puck and then scoring past former Marlie goaltender, Drew MacIntyre.

Having not been tendered a qualifying offer from the Maple Leafs, Carrick signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Chicago Blackhawks July 1, 2016.

It was a short-lived stay with that organisation as the forward was reassigned to the AHL, accumulating 28 points in 57 games before being traded to the Anaheim Ducks (in exchange for Kenton Helgesen and a 7th round pick) along with another former Marlie, Spencer Abbott.

It’s safe to say that Carrick has found himself a new home with the Anaheim organisation and thrived with the San Diego Gulls under the tutelage of former Marlies head coach, Dallas Eakins.

A total of 156 points (71-85-156) in 189 regular-season games for the Gulls and twenty-one playoff points (10-11-21) in 26 outings, including a trip to the conference finals in 2019.

This season was shaping up to be another fantastic campaign for the former Toronto forward, leading the Gulls in scoring with 43 points (23-20-43) in 46 games and at the forefront of San Diego’s playoff push.

Having been named San Diego’s Captain in the summer, Carrick even earned an opportunity back in the NHL with Anaheim, suiting up six times for the Ducks who are now coached by Eakins.