St. Louis Blues defenseman Carl Gunnarsson is a pending unrestricted free agent after this season, and with the way he is playing, he has earned a contract offer from his current team.
Carl Gunnarsson has had an injury-plagued career with the St. Louis Blues and this season has been no different for the 32-year-old Swede. However, with his performance this season when healthy, his play has warranted a spot on next year’s roster.
Injuries have defined the career of Gunnarsson. When healthy, it is clear that he has been a productive everyday defenseman, but those times are few and far between.
He only has one full season of action under his belt during his ten-year NHL career. In 2013-14, Gunnarsson played a career-high 80 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs. A year in which he registered 17 points and was a plus 12.
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Two years after being acquired from Toronto for Roman Polak, Gunnarsson appeared in 72 games for St. Louis but has been on a steady decline since.
Fast forward to the 2019-2020 season. Gunnarsson’s year started poorly. After having two surgeries over the offseason, Gunnarsson was on injured reserve for the majority of the season.
After expecting the defense to be the Blues strength this season, it has been anything but. Alex Pietrangelo came into the season as a bonafide Norris Trophy candidate but is having the worst season of his career.
Vince Dunn has had his ups and downs this season, but lately, the sophomore slump curse is becoming more and more apparent. Pietrangelo’s longtime partner on the blue line Jay Bouwmeester started the season as the world’s worst defender but has turned his season around.
Colton Parayko and Joel Edmundson have been the Blues best defensemen when taking into consideration the year as a whole. However, Gunnarsson is quickly inserting himself in the conversation.
Gunnarsson has only played in 15 games for St. Louis this season, but his impact on the Blues has been great. He had a five-game point streak before not registered a point in the Blues latest game against the LA Kings, but his impact on the team has exceeded his point production.
The Blues are simply a better defensive team when Gunnarsson is in the lineup. He has played up and down the Blues defensive lineup and has made every player he has played with better.
Five points in 15 games is not enough to warrant a spot on next season’s Blues roster. Many different things have to go right for both St. Louis and Gunnarsson for a reunion to happen. However, if he continues this level of production, it is a no brainer to bring back Gunny on a one or two-year deal.