"I knew right away," Carrick said of Tuesday's game between Dallas and Toronto at American Airlines Center. "It was after playing in Chicago, and I am from Chicago, and I knew where we were going with the Leafs, and I am excited to be on the other side of it."

He was aware that the Maple Leafs had an early four-game road trip that would start in Chicago and then head south.

After Connor Carrick was traded from Toronto to the Dallas Stars last week, he didn't have to look at a calendar to see when the first game against his former team would come.

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The 24-year-old Carrick, acquired for a conditional seventh-round pick in 2019, has made a positive impact as the Stars have opened the season with wins over Arizona and Winnipeg. He's recorded three assists and a plus-three rating while averaging 15:36 of ice time on the third defense pair, partnering with another ex-Leaf, veteran Roman Polak.

"It's been fun. Really trying to accelerate the learning curve and trying to raise the bar as far as expectations with myself," Carrick said. "I think the whole league kind of makes five-game jumps. Five games in, the game looks completely different than game zero, and that's it for games 10, 15, and 20. It's a little bit of a sprint out of the blocks and 2-0 is a good start against a strong Winnipeg team and Arizona is improved, and now we're playing a team with a lot of hype in Toronto, so it will be fun."

While Carrick has played well in his first two games in Dallas, the 5-foot-11, 195-pound right-handed shooting blueliner thinks he can bring more.

"I think there is another level to my game offensively in terms of being able to add and contribute off the rush," Carrick said. "I am not sure even to date I've skated the way I want to in open ice, getting pucks back, being able to shake someone and move it."

Video: Stars' Nichushkin progressing in return from injury

The Stars coaching staff has liked what they have seen from Carrick, who has a plus-2 SAT (Corsi) rating during 5-on-5 play and has been on the ice for seven high-danger chances for and just two against, according to naturalstattrick.com.

"I think he's been really good. I thought in the second game he was better than the first," Stars coach Jim Montgomery said. "He's really starting to grasp how we want to play. His biggest tools work well with the way we want to play."

Among those tools are his skating, hockey sense, and puck management along with his willingness to compete and engage in the battle. Montgomery pointed to one battle in Saturday's 5-1 win over the Jets.

"He gave up probably seven inches with (Winnipeg forward Adam Lowry) in front of the net, and he stood toe-to-toe with him," Montgomery said. "And although nothing happens with it, it's that not backing down attitude, that fearless attitude is something we want from everyone in our lineup."

This is Carrick's sixth professional season. He's had his ups and downs, and he's battled to become a regular in the NHL. He knew early on in Toronto's training camp that he was the odd man out and was headed to the waiver wire. But the Stars jumped in to cut a deal to acquire via trade, and now he's got a fresh start and is trying to make the make the most of it.

"It's a mental struggle that can become very physical. Momentum is a funny thing. You can either get the ball rolling for you or against you," Carrick said. "Personally, it's always been to block the mental and keep the physical as strong as possible, so you are playing above a seventh role or whatever it is and hopefully when you get in and get your shot, you run with it.

"It's not uncommon that guys need a fresh look to settle in. It's a demanding game physically and mentally, so here we are."

'Good chance' Nichushkin plays vs. Leafs

The Stars practiced before a packed house at StarCenter McKinney on Monday, and forward Valeri Nichushkin, who has been out with a lower-body injury, was on the ice.

Montgomery said Nichushkin could make his season debut Tuesday.

"I thought he looked good today," Montgomery said. "There is a good chance that he plays tomorrow. We need to go back and talk about it. It's hard to change the lineup when you played as well as last game, but it's something we have to think about and evaluate."

The Dallas coach said he and his staff would consider a couple of factors before deciding whether to put Nichushkin in the lineup.

"Matchups. Long-term vs. short-term," Montgomery said. "Short-term, we can stay with the same lineup. But long-term, we know Val is a big part of what we are going to do here."

If Nichushkin does play, Montgomery said he would probably slot in on the fourth line to start.

"The first three lines are playing well together. It's hard to change things that are having success," Montgomery said. "I don't like to over-coach and complicate things."

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Mark Stepneski has covered the Stars for DallasStars.com since 2012. Follow him on Twitter @StarsInsideEdge.