MONTREAL – Buffalo Sabres center Sam Carrick, who made his NHL debut way back in 2014-15, had only experienced the Stanley Cup Playoffs once prior to this season.
Two years ago, after Edmonton acquired him before the trade deadline, he played 10 games during the Oilers’ run to Game 7 of the Cup final.
Carrick served as a depth piece, moving in and out of the lineup.
The memories of that special run are seared in his memory.
“To go all the way to the finals, Game 7, just to see how much the city gets behind the team, it’s pretty special, especially in a market where hockey’s the No. 1 thing,” Carrick told the Times Herald following Saturday’s practice at KeyBank Center in Buffalo.
These days, hockey is certainly No. 1 in Buffalo.
While he has felt the energy from a rabid fan base thrilled to be back in the postseason, Carrick, having injured his left arm in a fight on March 31, hadn’t played in a game this postseason until Sunday.
After a 15-game absence, Carrick, who started practicing again on Tuesday, returned for Game 3 of the best-of-seven second-round series against the Canadiens in the Bell Centre. He replaced center Tyson Kozak, who missed Saturday’s practice for maintenance.
“Probably the most excited I’ve been to play hockey in a long time,” he said. “I haven’t really had to deal with too many injuries the last few years. So to get injured at a time like this, the most important time of the year, definitely sucks, but it gave me a lot of motivation throughout the rehab to get back as quickly as possible and just do everything to get ready.”
Carrick, 34, said watching games from the sideline felt like a “roller coaster.”
“I feel like it’s less emotional when you’re in the game and you’re playing,” he said. “You’re focused on one thing. When you’re sitting there watching, there’s nothing you can do to control, so you feel a little helpless.”
Following his arrival on March 6 from the New York Rangers, Carrick played a significant role for the Sabres, scoring goals, winning critical faceoffs and fighting.
Good teams always seem to find a deadline acquisition who boosts them down the stretch and into the postseason.
Carrick scored five goals and six points and won 57.2 percent of his faceoffs in his first 13 games with the Sabres.
The Sabres traded third- and sixth-round pick for his services, so the deal has already paid for itself.
Carrick pivoted the fourth line between Jordan Greenway and Beck Malenstyn.
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In Friday’s 5-1 loss, Greenway hit Ivan Demidov, causing the Montreal rookie’s skate to come up and cut Malenstyn’s left hand.
Malenstyn kept playing without his glove, keeping his hand tucked behind his back as the Canadiens buzzed around the Buffalo zone during a power play.
“I was just trying not to bleed all over the ice, honestly, in the instance of having to block a shot, just didn’t want my hand out there,” Malenstyn said Sunday morning. “I tried to hold it behind me for as long as I could.”
Malenstyn ended up clearing the puck out of the zone.
“That epitomizes just a playoff effort right there,” Ruff said. “He’s got a hand that he can’t use, he’s got it behind his back, he’s got one hand on his stick, and you know he’s probably going to lay down. He would probably block the shot with the bad hand, too, if he had to. But that’s the type of effort he’s given us all year.”