Delivering a dominant series of performances at a World Cup as part of a history-making side - that's how Carter wants to end things.
He's on track. Bang on track, really. As the game at St James' Park was winding down yesterday, Carter was winding up. He did what he has so rarely done in the past four years and ran at the line with confidence. There was, literally, a skip in his step.
He backed himself and it made all the difference.
Last week against Georgia, he pushed everything out - turning his body into passes that let the defence immediately drift. It was crying out for him to straighten and attack the space around the ruck.
This week, he took greater responsibility and didn't leave it exclusively to others to probe for space. He was happy to charge, dance a bit and commit tacklers to him.
That had been missing last week and the Tongans had to watch him. They had to defend his channel inside and out and the wide All Blacks runners weren't mobbed as a consequence.
His defence was a feature; in the modern game, any sniff of weakness in the tackling of the No10 will be exploited in a flash. Carter's mastery in that area was so good against Tonga that whomever the All Blacks play in the quarter-final simply won't even go there. They will have seen how Carter goes low and chops big men down, allowing his loose forwards to compete for the ball.
The scoreboard ticked along better, too. And that was down to the accuracy of Carter's goalkicking. His timing was back and only one kick, his last, didn't find the target.
"It was a big improvement from last week and much needed," Carter said. "It's always good to see the ball sailing through the posts.
"I've been kicking the ball well in training so it's great to get the results out on the field. And I guess I got a bit more going in my attacking game - taking the ball to the line in the second half was pleasing as well. I think with myself, as with the rest of the team, there is room for improvement."
Such has been Carter's excellence over the years, that he can't be categorised as a big-game player. That implies he delivers only when the challenge is greatest. There's no doubt, though, his better performances have come in the biggest games, for it is then that his ice-cool temperament allows him to manipulate a way through the carnage.
While others lose the plot under pressure, Carter falls deeper into his zone. And this is exactly what the All Blacks need from him - his calm and accuracy.
Points will be crucial in the quarter-final. That left leg of his has to swing true. Territory will outweigh possession in importance and Carter's ability to carve off huge chunks of it will be vital.
How he reads the game will have a huge impact, as will the details - his restarts and his distribution.
"This is a final for us this week," says Carter. "There are no more guaranteed games after this weekend, so it is exciting. We will have to ensure we train extremely well and make sure we are up for it.
"I felt good out there for the entire 80 minutes. The Tongans put us under a lot of pressure. They were extremely physical and their line speed was pretty quick, which opened a few doors for me to run into and once we got that physicality back into our game, it made my job a lot easier."
