It's tougher than ever to tell Koivus apart

DALLAS - In 1995, a Montreal Canadiens star named Mark Recchi was assigned to show the ropes to a hotshot 20-year-old prospect named Saku Koivu.

That same year, Koivu's little brother, a 12-year-old named Mikko, came to Montreal with his parents, Jukka and Tuire, to visit Big Bro.

"He was so excited his brother was in the NHL. And you could tell there was something special there, too," said Recchi, now 40, a potential Hall of Famer who's still trucking along with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Recchi spent four years as Saku Koivu's roommate, and he sees a lot of the same traits in Mikko, who has slowly but surely developed into one of the Wild's most important players.

"The leadership just flows out of them. They're good people, and there's a competitive fire there that's truly special. It's all about the team," Recchi said. "I think last year in the playoffs, I know it didn't go as well for the [Wild], but we all found out it was Mikko's team.

"The progression Mikko's made year by year is phenomenal. Jacques Lemaire has done an amazing job of putting him in different roles and different roles, and all of a sudden, he's the leader of the hockey club.

"And you saw that in the playoffs, and you definitely see it now with the way he's stepping up. It's Mikko's team and you really sense that."

As Brian Rolston used to say, there's a reason Koivu's teammates call him "Franchise."

Tonight, at Xcel Energy Center, is Round 3 of Mikko vs. Saku, only in a lot of ways, it's a much fairer fight.

"In terms of scoring, playmaking and how good he is defensively, Mikko's got everything," Recchi said. "He's evolved into one of the top two-way players in the league."

Unlike Mikko's rookie year in 2005-06 when the brothers -- 8 1/2 years apart -- played each other for the first time, Mikko is no longer in Saku's shadows.

They both lead their teams in scoring -- Mikko had 13 points and was tied for the NHL lead with 12 assists before Wednesday night's game in Dallas, and Saku has 10 points and was second in the NHL with a plus-8.

And they're both team captains. Saku has donned the "C" since 1999, while Mikko is wearing it for the first time. No brothers have been captains at the same time since Brian (St. Louis) and Darryl (Chicago) Sutter from 1982 to 1987.

"Of course, it's something I'm proud of," Saku Koivu said. "It's fun to relive my young years through him. For a long time, we didn't have a lot of things in common. I was [in Montreal] and he was still back home [in Finland]. Now it's easier to relate to him and the feelings and emotions he's going through. He's worked hard to get to where he is today."

Three years ago, Mikko Koivu visibly detested talking about Saku. The two are very close, but Mikko didn't want to be known as "Saku's kid brother."

"It's easier to face it because you've been around," Mikko said. "It's not as big a deal."

Plus, Mikko is much more confident in his own abilities, although he refuses to discuss how well he's playing.

"Brian Rolston once told me, 'Never too low, never too high,'" Koivu said. "That's the biggest advice I've got, and the best."

GM Doug Risebrough said it was Mikko's bloodline that caused the Wild to draft him sixth overall in 2001.

"And I was thinking more of the father than the brother," Risebrough said. "The father was a coach, he played, was accomplished, so you knew Mikko's attention to detail and work ethic -- you could see it in his play at the time -- was inherent in him.

"And Mikko's mother, she's got the fire, I'm telling you. I remember on the mother-son trip [last season], she was the one that was the most demanding about making sure the team played well. She gave you the 'good luck,' but that was more like, 'Make sure you win tonight.'"

Perhaps there's even a chance Mikko and Saku could one day be teammates. Saku can become an unrestricted free agent next summer, and Canadiens GM Bob Gainey has said he doesn't plan on talking to him about a new contract until after the season.

Wild teammates often ask Mikko, "Is your brother coming?" and follow with jabs like, "We finally getting a No. 1 center?"

As for now, the Koivus have to settle for bragging rights when they meet tonight. Their parents will be at the game, and Round 1 in 2005-06 went to Mikko's Wild.

In fact, it was Mikko who stole the puck from Big Bro in overtime to set up Kurtis Foster's winner.

"[Saku] won the first faceoff," Mikko said, laughing. "That was for dinner in the summertime, and I did have to pay him for that. He got the dinner, but in my mind, the OT goal was bigger -- thanks to Fozzy."