Captain? What Captain?

The announcement of Saku Koivu's retirement last week was bittersweet. Sweet, for the memories of one the Montreal Canadiens most loved and respected team leaders in their history. Considering that list includes the likes of Maurice Richard, Jean Beliveau and Yvan Cournoyer, that is high praise.

Bitter, for the ignominious way in which some media in Montreal regarded his captaincy and being uncerimoniously jettisonned to the Anaheim Ducks in 2009, after a record tying ten-year tenure as team captain. Yes, that other captain was Beliveau.

Koivu was a talented hockey player, though maybe not a superstar by a statistical measure, who played in an era when the Habs roster was mediocre at best. He was a difference-maker for a team that managed far more playoff success than expected.

It was his battle with cancer, specifically Burkitt's lymphoma, that truly defined his character for Habs fans. Koivu demonstrated a quiet courage and determination that inspired many in the stands and on the ice. The experience cemented his relationship with the community, a legacy that remains to this day courtesy of the Saku Koivu Foundation's onging support of the Montreal General Hospital, and his role in securing a PET/CT diagnostic scanner.

Still, it is bittersweet that his last days as an NHL hockey player were not spent in a Habs uniform. If you believe in the power of symbolism, then in many ways it would have represented the paradigm shift in thinking that the Canadiens management claim to have undergone under Marc Bergevin's leadership.

It is for this reason many believe that Koivu's number 11 should be retired by the team, if not for his inspired leadership, certainly to make amends for letting go of one of its most respected leaders.

Perhaps part of the reason for not choosing a captain after sending Brian Gionta packing, is that the organization at long last recognized the bar set by Koivu. 

Perhaps veterans Andrei Markov and Tomas Plekanec, who both played with Koivu, recognize what it really means to be team captain.

Perhaps the Canadiens organization understand the maturity demonstrated by Koivu and so concluded that neither Max Pacioretty or P.K. Subban are ready to don the coveted 'C', at least not yet. 

Perhaps the Canadiens organization is recognizing what it had, and what it meant.

Perhaps.

Saku Koivu has certainly earned something beyond a cursory congratulations from the Montreal Canadiens for a long and successful career. I wonder though, if the idea of retiring his jersey will awaken those critics who regularly described Koivu as overrated and a poor leader for his difficulty with a certain language.

It's a page of history for which the organization and media ought to atone.

You could easily do worse than having a team captain like Saku Koivu, but you most assuredly would have a hard time doing better.