Saku Koivu recently announced his retirement from the NHL, and a lot of heat has picked up on whether or not he should have his number retired by the Habs. When you look up at the rafters in the Bell Centre, home of the famed Montreal Canadiens, a plethora of retired numbers (15) and Stanley Cup banners (24) hang from the ceiling. The numbers pay an homage to the greats who graced the logo of the Canadiens on their sweater, as we all know.
These individuals have one thing in common: they have all won the Cup with Montreal. Sadly, this is a virtue that Saku was never able to achieve, due to poor team building and dark days from which they could never climb out of during his tenure. But does this really mean that he should not have his number retired, being placed as one of the best players to lace up for the Habs during the late 90’s and 2000’s?
I think not. Saku had an unbelievable career with the Canadiens, to say the least. I’m going to outline exactly why his number should be retired and why his lack of a Stanley Cup ring shouldn’t determine whether the name “Koviu” should hang in one of hockey’s most historic arenas until the end of its existence.
Let’s take a look at his career first, shall we? The Finland native (important fact) was drafted 21st overall during the 1993 NHL Draft, held in Quebec City. He played the next season for TPS in the Finnish SM
By 1995-96, he was in Montreal, ready to start playing, despite critics claiming that his size was going to be a problem. His career started off with a 20-goal season, and while it took him seven years to duplicate that, he had injury problems right after his first season. Despite this, he was still posting at or near a point per game pace. Before the start of the 1999-00 season, the Habs named Koivu their 27th captain, and the first European to wear the “C’ in club history. Then came the dreaded 2001-02 season.
Koivu was diagnosed with Burkitt’s lymphoma, a cancer that affects over 1,200 individuals in the United States every year. He returned to Finland to recuperate, as the Canadiens went on with their yearly campaign. Amazingly, Koivu beat the horrific disease, and made a comeback for the last three regular season games of 01-02. He would then suit up for the ensuing postseason, which contained the hellacious rivalry between the Habs and the Boston Bruins.
The Habs were victorious in six games, advancing to round two versus the Carolina Hurricanes, who then knocked out the Canadiens two weeks later. Regardless, Saku was a monumentally large force on offense, notching 10 points in 12 games, and was undoubtedly a surge of energy and motivation for the team. He was awarded the Bill Masterton Trophy for his efforts and miraculous comeback that no fan could bash. This period of time made a lot of people notice the diminutive all-heart captain, and recognized just how he strong he could be, despite his previous ailments.
The 02-03 season was a fantastic year for Koivu, posting 71 points, but not so much for the Habs, who finished with a 30-35-8-9 record. Montreal was just seven points shy of beating out the Islanders for the 8th and final seed for the playoffs.
He had five more solid years with the Canadiens, albeit with some tough injuries to battle through once again, where he topped 50 or more points each season, including a career-high of 75 points in 2006-07, until they let him walk, basically for Scott Gomez, in conclusion of the 2008-09 season. ‘Shudder’.
When you think of all the players who had their number retired by the Habs, you visualize greatness, Cup victories, and outstanding statistics. Koivu undoubtedly meets two of those requirements, registering 641 points in 792 games, good enough for 10th overall in Montreal Canadiens history. He is also 6th overall in assists, ahead of Yvan Cournoyer and Maurice Richard, and behind Larry Robinson and Jaqcues Lemaire.
He was captain of the Habs for 10 years, tying him with legend Jean Beliveau, which is no easy feat in this generation of teams changing almost every season. He does not have a Cup, but should that fall solely on his shoulders? The Habs were still hoping to find their identity and attempted to stay afloat after losing Patrick Roy the best they could. The goaltending position was inconsistent, as only Jose Theodore played well but even he was on and off from time to time.
The forward corps were ever-changing and same on the back-end, attempting to strike gold and form a solid lineup. Numerous poor draft picks throughout those years hurt the Canadiens and while they made a few smart trades, the bad outweighed the good, and the Habs remained a middling organization throughout Koivu’s tenure. But we have to ask ourselves this question: should our impossible standards for retiring a number be lowered a bit? We are not in the 1970’s anymore, and the days of having a stacked team like the Canadiens boasted, especially with salary cap now, are gone.
Saku did a lot for the organization, the city of Montreal, and charity alike. His determination on the ice made him a figure to look up to for kids. Sure, he wasn’t perfect; he took some bad penalties, and his face-off numbers left some of us puzzled. But he wore his heart on his sweater for his team, and a suitable way to pay him back is to retire his jersey. Several players wore the #11 for the Habs, including Rejean Houle, Kirk Muller and Yvon Lambert. In fact, Brendan Gallagher currently wears it.
But like in the case of #5, which honors Bernie Geoffrion and Guy Lapointe (who will be recognized on November 8th of this year), #12 with Dickie Moore and Cournoyer, and #16 with Henri Richard and Elmer Lach, it is possible for those numbers to represent multiple players. So a possible hybrid number retiring isn’t impossible, as long as we make it crystal clear that Scott Gomez is not included in the ceremony. And yes, there are many more legends who have not had their number retired yet, but I firmly believe Saku Koivu is one player who deserves to have his number retired, at the very least, for all his years of dedication, captaining a struggling squad, and for always bleeding the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.
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