Mikko Koivu

Now that Mikko Koivu’s hung up his skates, we can guess pretty well what his post-playing career looks like. His No. 9 will be hoisted to the rafters soon after fans can return to the Xcel Energy Center. He’ll likely pick up some sort of gig in the Wild front office. He’ll be a staple of Wild alumni teams and future retirement ceremonies.

Mikko Koivu announced his retirement Tuesday, following a 16-year career in the NHL. Koivu, the longtime Minnesota Wild captain, had signed a one-year, $1.5 million deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets this offseason. He played in seven games for Columbus, tallying one goal and one assist. "This was not an...

Koivu announced his retirement from the NHL on Tuesday. In his statement, Koivu stated that he wasn't able "to get to the level of play that I need to be true to myself and fair to my teammates, so the time is right for me to retire from hockey." Koivu played 15 seasons for the Wild before signing with the Blue Jackets last offseason, suiting up in just seven games for the latter team. In total, the Finnish center produced 206 goals and 505 assists over 1,035 games,

It was unexpectedly announced Tuesday afternoon that veteran center Mikko Koivu is retiring from the NHL. The 16-year veteran and long-time Minnesota Wild captain parted ways with the Wild after they decided they wanted to move on with the youth in the organization. That has backfired, as the Wild could have used him right about now with their weak center depth. Instead of retiring, he opted to sign a one-year contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets, where he could provide them with some stability down the middle.

Mikko Koivu has called it a day. In what was a bombshell announcement, the Columbus Blue Jackets announced earlier today that veteran forward Mikko Koivu has opted to retire immediately, despite signing a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the franchise in the offseason following 15 years with the Minnesota Wild.

Columbus Blue Jackets forward Mikko Koivu has retired from the NHL, general manager Jarmo Kekalainen announced Tuesday. Koivu spent 15 seasons with the Minnesota Wild before joining the Blue Jackets for 2021. The 37-year-old explained his decision to call it a career after recently inking a one-year pact with Columbus.

MINNEAPOLIS - Just seven games into his 16th NHL season, Mikko Koivu announced on Tuesday he was retiring from his professional hockey career. Koivu, 37, spent his first 15 seasons with the Minnesota Wild and spent 12 of those as the team’s captain. He signed a $1.5 million deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets after Wild General Manager Bill Guerin said last September the team was not bringing him back for the 2021 season. He played the 2020-21 season in the final year of his contract with the Wild.

Columbus Blue Jackets center Mikko Koivu announced he has decided to retire following a 16-year career in the National Hockey League. “This was not an easy decision for me as I have loved every minute of my short time in Columbus and really hoped to be able to help this team accomplish its goals this season, but the bottom line is I haven’t been able to get to the level of play that I need to be true to myself and fair to my teammates, so the time is right for me to retire from hockey,” said Koivu. “I have been extremely blessed and I am eternally grateful to the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets organizations for the opportunities they have given me to live out my dreams of playing in the National Hockey League for the past 16 years.”

Well it’s been a tumultuous week in world of the Columbus Blue Jackets. Aaron Portzline of The Athletic theorized on TSN 690 this morning that head coach John Tortorella might want out of Columbus, as the reason for why he benched Patrik Laine last night for the entire third period.

Mikko Koivu’s stay with the Columbus Blue Jackets was a brief one. The longtime Wild captain, who signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the Blue Jackets as a free agent during the offseason, announced his retirement on Tuesday after playing in only seven games in his 16th NHL season. Koivu’s start to the season was delayed until two weeks ago because he was on the COVID-19 list. The 37-year-old center one goal and one assist for Columbus and did not have a point in his past five games before being a healthy scratch on Monday against Carolina.

There’s never a good time to say goodbye. Too bad for Wild fans, who for the third time in five months are wishing farewell to Mikko Koivu. Back in September, the Minnesota Wild announced that they would not re-sign their longtime captain. The move was not surprising, coming on the heels of Minnesota flipping veteran Eric Staal for little in return. Bill Guerin decided it was time to shake up the locker room, which logically included Koivu.