TORONTO

When 22-year-old Connor Carrick was acquired alongside veteran winger Brooks Laich and a second-round pick for Daniel Winnik ahead of the NHL’s trade deadline, he was labelled an ‘A’ prospect by Leafs general manager Lou Lamoriello.

Three games into the Marlies playoff run, he’s proving it as a go-to defencemen for head coach Sheldon Keefe.

“He’s a young guy, you lose sight of that a little bit because he’s been around and he’s played in the NHL,” Keefe said.

After registering four points in 16 games with the Leafs to close out the 2015-16 season, Carrick joined the Marlies and was immediately slotted alongside captain Andrew Campbell on the team’s top pairing.

In Game 3 of the Marlies’ first-round sweep of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Thursday, Carrick opened the scoring for Toronto, tying the game on an unassisted slapshot over former Leafs prospect Chris Gibson’s shoulder on the power play.

The Marlies have made changes to their four-forward power play to allow Carrick and fellow high-scoring defencemen T.J. Brennan to play together.

In the second period, again with the Marlies trailing, Carrick faked a shot and found Brennan for Toronto’s second goal of the game.

Minutes later, he sent a wrist shot over Gibson’s shoulder for his second goal of the game and third point, cutting the Sound Tigers’ lead to 4-3.

With 1:00 remaining in the second period, he snuck to the front of the net to convert on his hat trick. On Zach Hyman’s goal late in the third period to make it 6-4, Carrick picked up his fifth point of the night.

Throughout the game, he could be seen tapping his stick and calling for passes, moving up into the offensive zone as a fourth forward

Despite standing just 5-foot-10, Carrick doesn’t shy away from playing physically. As a rookie with the Hershey Bears, he registered 132 penalty minutes.

This isn’t the first time the former fifth-round pick in 2012 has succeeded either.

Internationally, Carrick won silver and gold medals with the United States at the under-17 and under-18 levels playing alongside Winnipeg Jets defencemen Jacob Trouba, registering a point per game.

An AHL All-Star before being acquired by the Leafs, Carrick appeared in 34 games with the Capitals.

Despite his youth, he has used his experience to help mentor a young Marlies team.

“He does a lot more than just what you saw on the ice today,” Keefe said. “He shows on the ice the things he can do and helps us tremendously in all areas.”

Through three playoff games, Carrick now has seven points.

He doesn’t remember the last time he scored five points in a game, even back to his days in midget hockey.

“A big part of it is luck,” he said.

His experience in the NHL has helped give him confidence with the Marlies.

“The anxiety levels aren’t as high,” he said. “Personally, I’ve got a larger cushion of success that I can rely on.”

Campbell credits Carrick’s success to his skillset, though.

“Obviously we don’t expect production like that every night but he’s a very dynamic player,” the Marlies captain said. “To add him to the mix at the deadline was huge.”