Mikko Koivu will be the first member of Minnesota Wild to have jersey retired

The No. 9 worn by Mikko Koivu will be retired by the Minnesota Wild — the first player to have the honor bestowed by the franchise.

The ceremony will take place March 13 before a game against the Nashville Predators at Xcel Energy Center.

Mikko Koivu will be honored in Minnesota

The Wild selected Koivu with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2001 NHL Draft, and he played all but seven of his 1,035 regular-season games with the franchise over 16 NHL seasons. He was Minnesota’s captain from 2009-20.

“No one worked harder than Mikko during his time with the Minnesota Wild,” Wild general manager Bill Guerin said. “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 native of Finland is the Wild’s career leader in points (709), assists (504) and regular-season games (1,028), and he ranks second in goals (205). He added 11 goals and 17 assists in a team-record 59 Stanley Cup Playoff games.

He retired in February after playing seven games with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He had signed a free-agent deal with the team.

–Field Level Media