Saku Koivu
Saku Koivu | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Born |
Turku, Finland | November 23, 1974||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 181 lb (82 kg; 12 st 13 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Centre | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shot | Left | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Played for |
TPS Montreal Canadiens Anaheim Ducks | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
National team |
NHL Draft | 21st overall, | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing career | 1992–2014 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Saku Antero Koivu (pronounced
Playing career
TPS (SM-liiga)
Koivu began his professional ice hockey career playing for
Koivu would return to the TPS squad during the 2004–05 NHL lockout, scoring eight goals and eight assists in 20 games.
Montreal Canadiens
Koivu was drafted by the
The next two seasons, Koivu continued to miss time with various leg injuries. In each year, however, he managed to play in more than 60 regular season games, scoring 57 and 44 points in
After six seasons in the NHL, Koivu was diagnosed with
Koivu was expected to be out for the season but made a remarkable comeback in time for the last few games. Fans gave Koivu an eight-minute standing ovation when he skated onto the
Koivu suffered further knee problems in 2003–04 and was forced to miss 13 games. During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, he returned to Finland to play for TPS, whose head coach at the time was his father, Jukka Koivu. He was joined in Turku by Canadiens teammate Craig Rivet. When NHL play resumed in 2005–06, Koivu returned to the Canadiens to tally 62 points in 72 games. On April 26, 2006, however, during a home playoff game against the Carolina Hurricanes, Koivu sustained a serious injury to his left eye; Hurricanes forward Justin Williams attempted to lift Koivu's stick but instead struck him in the eye.[7] Koivu was rushed to the hospital, where he would remain overnight and for the remainder of the playoffs. He remained out of the lineup for the rest of the series and underwent surgery to repair a detached retina during the off-season.
Koivu has admitted to having lost some degree of peripheral vision out of the injured eye which he will likely never regain. As well, a small cataract developed following the retinal re-attachment surgery that was later successfully removed.[8] He has since opted to wear a larger style of visor than he had previously worn.
Koivu's play the next season demonstrated that he could still complement his linemates with seemingly no adverse impact to his performance.
Early in the 2007–08 season in October, Koivu was criticized by nationalist lawyer Guy Bertrand for not speaking French in a videotaped pre-game ceremony. Although Koivu is fluent in English, Swedish and Finnish, he speaks limited French and is apprehensive about using it in public.[11] He replied to Bertrand's remarks that he is not perfect, and jokingly mentioned that he speaks French to his wife during intimate moments.[12] Koivu introduced his team in the next pre-game video with the phrase "Ici Saku Koivu, voici mon équipe" ("Saku Koivu here, this is my team").[11] Later that season, in NHL.com's March 2008 edition of Impact! Magazine, Brian Compton listed the ten best captains of all-time since Steve Yzerman was first named captain of the Detroit Red Wings in 1986; Koivu was included in the article in tenth place, behind the likes of Mark Messier and Mario Lemieux.[13] He finished the season with 56 points. In the subsequent 2008 playoffs, Koivu missed a few games with a broken foot. Nevertheless, he contributed 9 points in 7 games.
On October 18, 2008, Koivu moved up to seventh on the Canadiens' all-time assists list, surpassing Maurice "Rocket" Richard in a game against the Phoenix Coyotes; Koivu netted one and assisted on two from newly acquired linemate Alex Tanguay when the Habs beat Coyotes 4–1.[14] Koivu reached another milestone with his 600th career point the following game against the Florida Panthers on October 20, 2008.[15]
Anaheim Ducks
Upon the conclusion of the 2008–09 season, Koivu tied Jean Béliveau as the longest-serving captain in team history, having held the position for ten years. Koivu's tenure ended a ten-year period from 1999 to 2009 in which six Canadien team captains had previously been traded away. Becoming an unrestricted free agent in the off-season, Koivu and the Canadiens parted ways after 14 years, where on July 8, 2009, he signed a one-year, $3.25 million deal with the Anaheim Ducks, playing alongside countryman and fellow NHL veteran Teemu Selänne.[2] Koivu was named an alternate captain of the Ducks before the 2009–10 season began.
Following the 2009–10 season, Koivu re-signed with the Ducks for two more seasons. He continued to serve as an alternate captain for the Ducks alongside Selänne.
On January 22, 2011, during the 2010–11 season, Koivu made his first return to Montreal as a member of the Ducks, and was welcomed by a standing ovation.[16]
On March 12, 2012, Koivu played in his 1,000th career NHL game.
On October 24, 2013, Koivu returned to Montreal for a second time as a Duck, and was once again welcomed by a standing ovation in what would be his last game at the Bell Centre.[17] In the 2013–14 season, Koivu appeared in 65 regular season games while recording 29 points (11 goals and 18 assists). On June 19, 2014, the Ducks announced that they would not be offering Koivu a contract for the 2014–15 season, making him a free agent.[18]
On September 10, 2014, Koivu announced his retirement from the NHL after 18 seasons in the League.[19]
International play
Koivu has represented
Koivu won a silver medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics and bronze medals at the 1994, 1998 and 2010 Olympics Winter Olympics. He was also on the 2004 World Cup team, which advanced to the final but lost against Canada, thus winning silver.
Koivu's most renowned achievement with Finland is as first line centre in the
Koivu was regularly partnered with Teemu Selänne and Jere Lehtinen in a line if all three were available. The trio has been a key factor to Finland's success at many bigger events. The line plays mainly to the excellent chemistry Koivu and Selänne seem to have and this has also affected the NHL; after 1999 World Championships, Selänne said in an interview on a Finnish TV program, "It would be great to play with Saku," which led to speculation about Koivu being traded to Anaheim. This finally became true a decade later when Koivu signed with Anaheim in July 2009.
On February 23, 2006, Koivu was elected by his fellow Olympic competitors as a member of the Athletes' Commission of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Personal life
Koivu was born to Jukka and Tuire Koivu[22] on November 23, 1974, in Turku. His younger brother Mikko is also a former ice hockey player, who played for the Minnesota Wild and the Columbus Blue Jackets. Saku Koivu and his wife Hanna have two children, a daughter, Ilona (born 2004) and a son, Aatos (born 2006).[23]
In 2008, the Montreal-based band Simple Plan featured Koivu in its video for the song "Save You." The song was about the battle with cancer of the brother of Simple Plan frontman Pierre Bouvier. Koivu is one of several cancer survivors appearing in the video.
Awards and honors
SM-liiga
- Kanada-malja – 1993, 1995
- Kultainen kypärä award – 1995
- Jari Kurri trophy– 1995
- Lasse Oksanen trophy – 1995
- Veli-Pekka Ketola trophy – 1995
- President's Trophy – 1999
NHL
- Voted to the (did not play due to injury)
- Bill Masterton Trophy – 2002
- King Clancy Memorial Trophy – 2007
- First ever European-born captain of the Montreal Canadiens – 1999–2009
- Longest-serving captain in Canadiens history (tied with Jean Béliveau)
International
- Ice Hockey World Championships Tournament All-Star – 1994, 1995, 1999
- Ice Hockey World Championships Tournament's Best Forward – 1995, 1999
- Ice Hockey World Championships Tournament's Top scorer – 1999
- Finnish Ice hockey player of the year – 1994, 1995
- 1998 Winter Olympics top scorer (tied with Teemu Selänne)
- 2006 Winter Olympics Tournament All-Star
- 2006 Winter Olympics top scorer (tied with Teemu Selänne)
- Captain of Finland national team– 1998–2010
- Inducted into IIHF Hall of Fame (2017)[24][25]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Regular season
|
Playoffs | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
1990–91 | TPS | FIN U20 | 12 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1991–92 | TPS | FIN U20 | 34 | 25 | 28 | 53 | 57 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 6 | ||
1992–93 | TPS | SM-l
|
46 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 28 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | ||
1993–94 | TPS | SM-l | 47 | 23 | 30 | 53 | 42 | 11 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | ||
1994–95 | TPS | SM-l | 45 | 27 | 47 | 74 | 73 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 16 | ||
1995–96 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 82 | 20 | 25 | 45 | 40 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 8 | ||
1996–97 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 50 | 17 | 39 | 56 | 38 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 10 | ||
1997–98 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 69 | 14 | 43 | 57 | 48 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | ||
1998–99 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 65 | 14 | 30 | 44 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1999–00 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 24 | 3 | 18 | 21 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2000–01 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 54 | 17 | 30 | 47 | 40 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2001–02 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 4 | ||
2002–03 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 82 | 21 | 50 | 71 | 72 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2003–04 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 68 | 14 | 41 | 55 | 52 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 10 | ||
2004–05 | TPS | SM-l | 20 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 28 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 30 | ||
2005–06 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 72 | 17 | 45 | 62 | 70 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
2006–07 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 81 | 22 | 53 | 75 | 74 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2007–08 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 77 | 16 | 40 | 56 | 93 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 4 | ||
2008–09 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 65 | 16 | 34 | 50 | 44 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | ||
2009–10 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 71 | 19 | 33 | 52 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2010–11 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 75 | 15 | 30 | 45 | 36 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 6 | ||
2011–12 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 74 | 11 | 27 | 38 | 50 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2012–13 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 47 | 8 | 19 | 27 | 18 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | ||
2013–14 |
Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 65 | 11 | 18 | 29 | 46 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | ||
Liiga totals | 158 | 61 | 92 | 153 | 171 | 41 | 17 | 22 | 39 | 64 | ||||
NHL totals | 1,124 | 255 | 577 | 832 | 809 | 79 | 18 | 41 | 59 | 60 |
International
Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1992 | Finland | EJC18 | 4th | 6 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 18 | |
1993 | Finland | WJC |
5th | 7 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 6 | |
1993 |
Finland | WC | 7th | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
1994 | Finland | WJC | 4th | 7 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 12 | |
1994 | Finland | OG | 8 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 12 | ||
1994 |
Finland | WC | 8 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 4 | ||
1995 |
Finland | WC | 8 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 18 | ||
1996 | Finland | WCH | QF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | |
1997 |
Finland | WC | 5th | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | |
1998 | Finland | OG | 6 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 4 | ||
1999 | Finland | WC | 10 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 4 | ||
2003 | Finland | WC | 5th | 7 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 4 | |
2004 | Finland | WCH | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | ||
2006 | Finland | OG | 8 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 12 | ||
2008 | Finland | WC | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | ||
2010 | Finland | OG | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
Junior totals | 20 | 7 | 19 | 26 | 36 | ||||
Senior totals | 89 | 30 | 64 | 94 | 78 |
See also
- List of NHL players with 1,000 games played
- List of family relations in the National Hockey League
- List of Olympic medalist families
References
- ISBN 978-0-385-66325-0
- ^ a b "Au revoir, Montreal: Koivu finds new home with Ducks". The Sports Network. July 8, 2009. Retrieved July 8, 2009.
- ^ "Koivu winner in fight against cancer". The Orange County Register. October 29, 2009. Retrieved November 27, 2010.
- ^ Fisher, Red (September 6, 2001). "Ailment sidelines Koivu for year". Montreal Gazette. Archived from the original on December 17, 2001.
- ESPN Magazine. March 20, 2002. Retrieved July 10, 2008.
- ^ "Big night starts with Koivu, ends with playoffs". ESPN. April 9, 2002. Retrieved July 10, 2008.
- ^ "CBC Sports Online: NHL Playoffs 2006". CBC News. April 26, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2008.
- ^ "Koivu undergoes successful eye surgery". The Sports Network. May 1, 2006. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved July 10, 2008.
- ^ "Canadiens' Koivu cautious over eye injury". CBC News. September 5, 2006. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
- ^ "Koivu undergoes further treatment". The Sports Network. June 5, 2007. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved July 10, 2008.
- ^ Canada.com. October 31, 2007. Archived from the originalon November 9, 2012. Retrieved October 18, 2010.
- ^ "Koivu responds to Nationalist Lawyer". The Sports Network. November 1, 2007. Archived from the original on January 3, 2008. Retrieved July 10, 2008.
- ^ "Impact! Magazine- March issue". National Hockey League. March 1, 2008. Archived from the original on August 22, 2009. Retrieved March 2, 2008.
- ^ "Canadiens 4, Coyotes 1". CBS Sports. October 18, 2008. Retrieved October 18, 2010.
- ^ "Bouillon's go-ahead goal extends Canadiens winning streak to 5". CBS Sports. October 20, 2008. Retrieved October 18, 2010.
- ^ "Bell Centre greets Koivu with long standing ovation". Canada: CBC.
- The Montreal Gazette. October 23, 2013. Archived from the originalon October 26, 2013. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
- ^ "Anaheim Ducks: Murray said he spoke to Koivu, Hiller and Winnik and informed them the team will not offer them contracts this offseason". twitter.com. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
- ^ "Saku Koivu retires after 18 seasons". ESPN. Associated Press. September 10, 2014. Retrieved September 12, 2014.
- ^ "Koivu won't replace Ville Peltonen as captain". yle.fi (in Finnish). May 6, 2008. Archived from the original on May 10, 2008. Retrieved May 6, 2008.
- ^ "Finnish led by Koivu, Lehtinen and Peltonen". IIHF. July 1, 2008. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved July 10, 2008.
- ^ Wigge, Larry. "Koivu brothers doing Finland proud". National Hockey League. Retrieved October 25, 2008.
- ^ Stubbs, Dave (December 17, 2014). "Popular Saku Koivu expects "awesome, emotional" Bell Centre tribute". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
- ^ "Teemu Selänne ja Saku Koivu kunniagalleriaan – katso juhlallisuudet". Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). Helsinki, Finland. May 21, 2017. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
- ^ Podnieks, Andrew (April 25, 2017). "A league of their own: IIHF Hall of Fame names 20th induction class". IIHF. Retrieved March 22, 2019.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or ESPN.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database