In eight seasons in the NHL, five of which were with the Maple Leafs, Carl Gunnarsson hasn’t been one to soak up the spotlight.



Traded for Roman Polak in the summer of 2014, Gunnarsson has never topped the 20-point mark. Instead, he works as a reliable defenceman, a well-liked teammate, and a penalty killer.



On Thursday, The Athletic caught up with the 30-year-old defenceman, taken by the Leafs in the seventh round of the 2007 NHL Draft, to talk about his time in Toronto, recent changes with the Blues, and the evolution of the NHL.



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Joshua Kloke: So what does it mean to you to be back in this building?



Carl Gunnarsson: It’s fun. It’s always fun to be back at the ACC. It’s a little different. You know, we played these guys last week in our building and I played a few old teammates, the ones that are left. It’s exciting to be back.



JK: It wasn’t that long ago that...