Koivu’s era reaches an emotional end
2006 Finnish Olympic teammates Saku Koivu (left) and Teemu Selanne are reunited with the Anaheim Ducks.
Timothy A. Clary, AFP/Getty Images
If you don’t believe that Saku Koivu has been larger than life in Montreal, you’ve not taken note of his multi-storey likeness on the southeast corner of the Bell Centre.
Koivu towers over St. Antoine St. on the arena that’s been his professional home since the building opened in March 1996, during his rookie season with the Canadiens.
He was named the club’s first European captain in the autumn of 1999, the 27th captain in franchise history. He’d wear the C on his jersey for nine seasons and 563 games.
This afternoon, on a conference call from his summer home in Finland, Koivu formally exited the Canadiens with the hallmark dignity and class that he’s displayed during 14 years in Montreal, a city that more than once did not deserve him.