So Saku was a great captain and Gionta isn't. Gionta has captained 2 teams through to the conference finals twice. Saku has done what exactly? Not harping on him, but Saku being a great captain is something I never understood. It's as if people are in the room to know who's good and who isn't. Saku coming back from terrible injuries and illness does not make him a great captain. Playing hard doesn't either. I never talk about who's a good/bad captain because I'm not in the room.
You don't get to be a captain in the NHL for a decade without good reason. The fact that he wasn't just a hard worker, but THE hardest worker on just about any night was just a bonus on top of the fact that he was also a top scorer every year. Ever take a look at the most productive Habs over Koivu's tenure in Montreal?
1. Koivu - 641
2. Markov - 329
3. Rucinsky - 297
4. Brisebois - 293
...
You get the point. No one with more than 5 seasons wearing the CH even comes close to him in PPG, either. What about the playoffs, you might be wondering?
1. Koivu - 48
2. Kovalev - 31
3. Recchi - 24
4. Brisebois - 17
...
You get the point. Surely someone can provide links to all the past explanations on the greatness of Koivu, and you could probably even pose your question(s) there instead. Bottom line is, imo, that Koivu wasn't ever part of the problem, and probably didn't need to be shipped out of town.
Probably.