Minnesota Wild: Koivu Leads The Wild Quietly and Steadily
One of the biggest debates over the last couple of seasons around the Minnesota Wild is if Mikko Koivu should be the captain of the team. With a quiet and steady leadership he’s guided the Wild through the storms of the past and is certainly a reason why they are on top of the division and conference today.
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Being the leader is never easy. For Mikko Koivu being the captain of the Minnesota Wild has been both an honor, a pleasure, and an extreme burden all at one time. Captain Finn has had the “C” on his sweater since the start of the 2009-10 season, and it seems almost instantly he’s drawn the admiration and ire of Wild fans simultaneously ever since.
A product of the Finnish way of playing the game, Koivu has always had a very disciplined and quite way of leading. That discipline shows through in the way he leads the Wild as well. He usually lets his 6 foot 3 inch 215lb frame do all the talking because he not much of a talker on the ice.
Fans over the years have largely criticized him for lack of what they see as leadership. Even this offseason there was suggestions from some of the fans that Koivu should not be the captain of this team. Lot of people around the State of Hockey were quick to pin the struggles of the Wild last season onto the shoulders of Koivu.
Jan 21, 2017; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild forward Mikko Koivu (9) during a game between the Anaheim Ducks and Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center. The Wild defeated the Ducks 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
But how could you blame him for the Wild’s season in 2015-16? Koivu was actually the team’s highest scorer appearing in all 82 games, and the locker room was so chaotic that even his calming nature could not right the ship of the Wild.
Koivu is a leader who knows how to apply the leadership in a calm and influencing manner. He’s a fiery leader if you watch him on the ice when he and his line mates perform well, or even poorly. It’s not that yelling and screaming type of fire though, it’s a controlled burn that is almost always appropriate and never done for selfish reasons that could hurt the team.
Jan 5, 2017; San Jose, CA, USA; Minnesota Wild center Mikko Koivu (9) shoots the puck against San Jose Sharks goalie Martin Jones (31) during the third period of the game at SAP Center at San Jose. The Minnesota Wild defeated the San Jose Sharks with a score of 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports
So far this season Koivu has only racked up 16 penalty minutes, and I’d be hard pressed to see any of those be of the retaliatory or lazy types. He’s usually penalized for battling which is exactly what you want a leader to show on the ice. It’s the example he’s setting.
Many who are not familiar with Koivu often equate his quiet nature to a lack of locker room leadership. That’s just not the case really. Before last season in an interview with Michael Russo Koivu explained that when addressing the team as a leader “you have to have a message behind what you say. And that was one where, ‘Everybody needs to stop, we need to change, we can’t go on like this. It’s enough.’ ”
That’s what makes Koivu a good captain. He had a goal for his words. In a time last year when the coaching staff was screaming for effect, Koivu was talking with a message. This season his message is the perfect complement to Bruce Boudreau’s player’s first mantra.
Line mate Mikael Granlund explains Koivu’s leadership style by clarifying to Phil Ervin of Wild.com that “Not even what he’s saying — obviously, we’re really good friends — but the example he shows every single day, He’s such a professional guy, and there’s a lot to learn [from] him.”
The Wild have learned a calm from Koivu that has made them resilient. Once again mix that calm with the perspective of Boudreau and you’ve got steady leadership for the Wild. You can talk about Koivu’s scoresheet accomplishments, which have him on pace for about 70 points and one of his best seasons ever, but it’s about the his other qualities that seems to have made the difference. He always deserved to wear the “C” and this recent success for the Wild should show you why.
