After the Saku Koivu Dust Settles
Saku Koivu made his return to the Bell Center on Saturday and in the days leading up to the game, and in the hours after, Habsland has been abuzz with opinions about how the Canadiens handled the evening.
My own take is that despite the evening’s shortcomings, it’s all good. Well, not quite all good, but close. The three-star selection, while relatively meaningless could have been done better. The way it went down with Koivu earning the second star was just awkward. The Habs should have departed from protocol for one night to get that part right. But the fans got it right, and 21,273 delighted fans giving Koivu such a mammoth ovation means more to me, and probably Koivu as well, than any tribute video or presentation could have.
Speaking of the lack of formal tribute in the form of a video or presentation…in the now immortal words of Carey Price:
“Chill out”.
Yes, it would have been nice. Given the way the Canadiens honour their greats, no doubt Saturday can be viewed as a missed opportunity to bring the house to tears.
I think Habs fans should be relieved that very little was done. It’s just a theory of mine, but here it is.
It would be unfathomable to think that what was done by the Canadiens on Saturday is all they ever plan on doing for Koivu. A quick alteration to the video that accompanies O’Canada cannot be the only way to pay tribute to such a great Canadien, and Montrealer. And because the Canadiens did so little to acknowledge a former nine-year captain I believe that we will see a proper ceremony – done the Canadiens way – once Koivu is in to his retirement. My theory gets better. The Canadiens don’t do things halfway. They won’t hold a Saku Koivu night just to send him home with an oil painting and the fans home with a 8.5 x 11″ copy of the painting (free with the purchase of the Canadiens magazine!).
When the Habs honour a player, they go all the way. They retire the number.
We can debate all day long whether he deserves to have his number retired based on his numbers, hall of fame credentials and his place relative to other Habs greats. I don’t think it’s unfair to say that his stats, and the likelihood that he will not be a hall of famer should affect his jersey rising to join the likes of Beliveau, Harvey, Plante and Robinson. It’s probably the heart talking here, but I believe Saku Koivu transcends hockey in Montreal and represents more than a terrific player with respectable stats. He represents determination, committment, heart, sacrifice and courage just as much, if not more than many of the names that are already hanging from the rafters.
Koivu himself believes that his number should not be retired. Modesty would also be something Koivu represents.
The Canadiens would have to break with tradition by retiring Koivu’s jersey. He would be the only non-cup winner and only non-hall of famer to have that honour. Those voids in his resumé drop him in to a class with other former Habs greats who would then, by that logic, also deserve to have their jersey retired. I don’t know if we need to be so black and white about it. Koivu was a special player who holds a special place in the hearts and minds of many, many Montrealers. That deserves proper acknowledgement, and I have no doubt that the Canadiens will answer the bell. But considering how long the Canadiens took to retire the numbers of Robinson, Geoffrion, Gainey and others, it may be a while before they honour Koivu.
It will be worth the wait.
Photograph by: Pierre Obendrauf, Gazette file photo
About Kyle Roussel
Kyle Roussel is owner and operator of Cowhide and Rubber. Make sure to follow him on Twitter
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