Hey Buzzword,
It's called e-z track for good reason. Don't make it harder than need be.
Each section of track should have one "connector?" at each end, left and right
(male and female). It's just a matter of sliding the rails together carefully. Run your finger across the rails once you've finished, any mismatches should be obvious; disconnect and redo. The transformer plugs into the wall and it's jack plugs into the controller. The jack, with the red wires, plugs into the controller (labeled:to track) while the flat-jack plugs into the appropriate receptacle on the re-railer section of the track (polarity doesn't matter as you can change that at with the switch on the controller) . Rail up your train and you should be in business. While braking in your loco, run it at various speeds, both forward and back-wards.
I'm new to this as well, so if I've made any mistakes, hopefully, the more experienced modelers will chime in. Good luck, have fun.
Dave
BTW, don't forget there is electricity involved. Don't put your tongue on the track or jacks.