BRAMPTON, Ont. – Some suggest that the Brampton Battalion, confounding preseason prognosticators with its first-place standing in the Ontario Hockey League’s Central Division, is a team without stars.

But knowledgeable observers know that captain Sam Carrick is one of the team’s proverbial go-to guys.

“He’s done a very commendable job as the leader of this hockey team,” said coach Stan Butler. “He’s one of two players who were here when we went to the OHL final in 2009, and he knows what it takes.”

Centre Carrick, a rookie along with defenceman Cameron Wind when the Battalion lost the OHL Championship Series in five games to the Windsor Spitfires in 2009, leads the Troops in scoring with 21 goals and 20 assists for 41 points in 43 games. The goals total ties his single-season high from 2009-10.

“That’s kind of what I’m here for, to be a primary scorer,” said Carrick. “Stan relies on our line of me, Ian Watters and Barclay Goodrow, and he gives us a lot of ice time. We just need to keep producing. Every time we’re out there we’re battling hard, and it’s just been going well so far.”

A first-round pick in the 2008 OHL Priority Selection, Carrick is one point from tying his best single-season total, 42 points from 21 goals and as many assists in 66 games two years ago.

The Battalion, which defeated the Erie Otters 5-2 Sunday with Carrick scoring two goals, boasts a won-lost-extended record of 24-11-8 for 56 points, one ahead of the Niagara IceDogs in the division and one behind the Ottawa 67’s in the Eastern Conference.

Said Butler: “The game was really important. We needed the two points. We’re in a dogfight with a bunch of teams right now and we want to keep chipping away at points.”

The Troops, who won for the first time in three games and who had lost four of their previous five while garnering a point in three of the losses, are 10-1-4 in their last 15 games.

“When things aren’t going your way, me and some of the older guys use our experience to calm everyone down and keep things positive,” said Carrick. “That’s the biggest thing. If we’re staying positive, then everyone else will stay positive.”

A 19-year-old resident of Stouffville, Ont., Carrick saw the end last Thursday night in a 3-2 loss to the visiting Belleville Bulls of a career-high 11-game points streak during which he had nine goals and 10 assists for 19 points.

Carrick, with totals of 68 goals and 75 assists for 143 points in 229 games, has tied Luch Aquino for 14th place in all-time Battalion scoring and Howie Martin for eighth place on the club’s career goals list.

“I have to give a lot of credit to my linemates, Watters and Goodrow. They’re both unbelievable players, and we’ve just had good chemistry.”

A fifth-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in the National Hockey League’s 2010 Entry Draft, Carrick stressed the importance of a positive attitude and the need to stay focused for the rest of the season.

“We just need to take things one game at a time and one shift at a time. We have some tough games coming up that we have to be prepared for, and we just need to keep staying positive and keep things going.”

Said Carrick: “Some teams have pumped up at the trade deadline. We know going into those games that we’re going to have to play Battalion hockey, working hard, getting hard on the forecheck and taking it one game at a time. I think, if we do that and we stick to our game plan, we’ll be fine.” 

The Battalion, which plays three of its next four games at home, hosts the Plymouth Whalers at 7 p.m. Thursday.