Carter is showing them something

Most of the focus on the true first-year players in training camp trying to win a job in the Ducks’ lineup fell on Bobby Ryan, their first-round pick in 2005 and the second player taken overall.

Ryan did make the team out of camp, but his time with the parent club has been limited to two brief looks totaling 13 games. The 20-year-old forward has spent most of the season in the American Hockey League at the team’s affiliate in Portland, Maine.

Aside from Swiss goalie Jonas Hiller backing up Jean-Sebastien Giguere, it is Ryan Carter making the case as the rookie who has made the most impact this season.

Undrafted from Minnesota State Mankato, Carter has been a versatile asset for Coach Randy Carlyle. Since being recalled from Portland on Dec. 17, Carter has played on three lines and has filled in admirably for injured centers Samuel Pahlsson and Doug Weight.

“We’ve put him in different situations, and he’s been able to make a complement to each situation we put him in,” Carlyle said. “So that’s a great asset to have for a young player that hasn’t got a lot of experience.

“He’s continually making it difficult to make a decision on if he plays or not. If he continues to play like that, how are you going to take a kid like that out of your lineup?”

Primarily used in the checking role, Carter has used his increasing responsibilities to show his offensive side.

Carter has scored all four of his goals in a five-game span heading into Wednesday’s game against Colorado, including the first two goals of his career Feb. 8 in a road victory at New Jersey.

“I’m not trying to make too much of it,” Carter said. “Dougie Weight, he’s a veteran and that’s his role. When he gets healthy, he’ll be back there. In the past, I have been relied on to score in [U.S.] junior hockey and college.

“It’s a role that I enjoy, as well as a defensive role.”

Carter has offense in him, having scored 16 goals and 36 points in his first full season at Portland last year. Now he has been put on a line with Chris Kunitz and Teemu Selanne, but Carlyle wasn’t ready to project what kind of upside Carter has.

“I think that’s too early for us to make any [judgment],” Carlyle said. “He’s a fit for our group because of his work ethic, his tenacity, his ability to be physical. He’s a strong skater who plays that up-tempo north-south game.

“Again, these are short-term results we’re receiving right now. But we like the short-term results so far.”

Carter helped make some history Sunday against Calgary when he scored on an assist from Selanne, making the Finnish star the Ducks’ all-time leading scorer.

“Playing with guys like Kuni and Selanne who’ve got that kind of speed, it’s just get them the puck and let them do their thing,” he said. “I’m just trying to catch up and play along with them.”

The Ducks’ annual “First Flight” field trip for elementary and middle school students Tuesday drew an estimated 16,000 kids from 115 schools throughout Southern California.

It’s the largest turnout in the seven-year history of the event. Students from kindergarten through eighth grade were treated to a practice session by the team along with a skills competition.

“Hopefully, they’ll go home and tell their mums and fathers that they need to go to a game,” Carlyle said.

Wednesday’s game was the 51st consecutive regular-season sellout for the Ducks, which ties the club record set from Dec. 22, 1993, to Oct. 20, 1995.

The team has sold out 63 consecutive games in all, including all of last season’s playoffs.

eric.stephens@latimes.com