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Minnesota Wild to retire Mikko Koivu’s jersey in March

By Tim Johnson

Mikko Koivu, who spent 15 seasons with the Wild and was the first captain in franchise history, will have his number retired in March. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
Mikko Koivu, who spent 15 seasons with the Wild and was the first captain in franchise history, will have his number retired in March. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
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Mikko Koivu sported No. 9 for a decade-and-a-half with the Minnesota Wild, but he has now also earned a No. 1 from the franchise as well.

The long-time captain who last played with the Wild during 2020 Stanley Cup qualifier round with Vancouver, will be the first Wild player to have his number retired. He played seven games with the Columbus Blue Jackets before he retired on Feb. 9, 2021.

The jersey ceremony will happen on March 13 at the Xcel Energy Center as the Wild host the Nashville Predators.

“No one worked harder than Mikko during his time with the Minnesota Wild,” Wild general manger Bill Guerin said in a team media release that was issued on Monday. “He was a fiery competitor and a fantastic captain both on and off the ice. Mikko is the franchise leader in so many categories, but the impact he made in our community and the connections he made with Wild fans, will live on forever.”

The Finnish center was selected sixth overall in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft and had 206 goals and 711 points in his career.

Among his highlights with Minnesota, Koivu:

• Made his  NHL debut at San Jose (11/5/05).

•  Scored first career NHL goal at Anaheim (11/6/05, Giguere).

• Was named the first full-time team captain in Wild history (10/20/09).

• Recorded three assists at New York Islanders (3/18/14) to become Wild’s all-time leading scorer.

• Tallied nine points (1-8=9) in first three games of 2008-09 season to become first NHL player to record nine or more points in team’s first three games of the season since Adam Oates in 1993-94.
• Recorded his first career game-winning goal at Colorado (2/22/07).

• Recorded career-high, eight-game point streak (3-7=10, 10/15-10/30/15).

• Notched his  200th career NHL goal vs. Chicago (2/2/19). Mikko and Saku Koivu (255) became 14th set of brothers to score at least 200 goals in the NHL.

• Tallied an assist for 700th career NHL point vs. Dallas (12/1/19).

“We are extremely excited to announce that Mikko Koivu will be the first player in team history to have his jersey retired,” Minnesota Wild owner Craig Leipold said in the media release. “Mikko did so many great things for our organization on the ice and in our community during his 15-year career here. He truly deserves this honor.”

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