Mike Modano

In 1986, 16-year-old Modano was invited by coach Rick Wilson of the Prince Albert Raiders to come to Saskatchewan and join the Western Hockey League team. At his very first game, he scored a hat trick, and by his second year, Modano was part of the WHL All-Star Team. Four days before Modano's eighteenth birthday, the Minnesota North Stars selected him as the first overall draft pick in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft. Modano was the second American to be selected first overall in the draft, after Brian Lawton in 1983. Contract problems lead Modano to play one more season with the Raiders.[5]

The North Stars signed Modano on Christmas of 1988, and he joined the team for the 1989–90 season. He scored his first career NHL goal against Glenn Healy of the New York Islanders, and had a good rookie season which landed him on the NHL All-Rookie Team and made him a finalist for the Calder Memorial Trophy.[5] He controversially lost to 31-year-old Sergei Makarov, who had already played professionally in the Soviet Championship League for over 12 years; this led to an age barrier of 26 for Calder candidates from the following year to the present.

Despite the good start, Modano was often criticized in Minnesota as an underachiever who did not compare to the 1988 number two pick, Trevor Linden. This was evidenced by a sophomore season where the North Stars reached the Stanley Cup Finals, but Modano barely repeated his goals and assists, while confronting coach Bob Gainey for his overtly defensive style. In 1992, Modano signed a four-year extension that made him the highest-paid member of the team, receiving $2 million per year. He soon had his best season up to that point, scoring 93 points at the 1992–93 NHL season and earning his first NHL All-Star Game invitation.[5]

Prior to the 1993–94 NHL season, the North Stars moved to Dallas to become the Dallas Stars. Considering the relocation to Texas as an opportunity for a fresh start, with different expectations from fans and the media, Modano decided to accept Gainey's suggestions to become a more complete player and perform more attacks. Modano recorded a personal-best 50 goals and again scored 93 points. Soon he became an idol in Dallas, becoming the player who sold the most jerseys and received the most letters. During the next two seasons, Modano lowered his goalscoring and had many injuries - a concussion, a knee injury and ruptured ankle tendons - but improved his defensive play. Despite that, the Stars failed to qualify for the 1996 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and Gainey stepped down as head coach, while remaining GM.[5]

Ken Hitchcock was hired on January 8, 1996 as Dallas' coach, installing a defensive-minded system while requesting Modano to concentrate on his offense and using him more routinely - instead of the 15–18 minutes he played under Gainey, Modano routinely played 25 minutes with Hitchcock. Helped by new acquisitions Joe Nieuwendyk and Sergei Zubov, Modano led the Stars to the Central Division title in the 1996-97 NHL season. In the 1998 Stanley Cup playoffs, with new goaltender Ed Belfour, the Stars reached the Western Finals.[5]

In 1999, Modano won the Stanley Cup with the Stars, playing all six games of the finals against the Buffalo Sabres despite breaking his wrist in the second game.[5] Modano assisted on the Stars' final five goals of the series, including both in Game 5 and Game 6, and final goal. Led the Stars with 23 points in the playoffs, with all seven in the finals on assists.[8] The Stars returned to the finals in 2000 against the New Jersey Devils. Modano scored the overtime goal that gave the Stars a victory in game 5,[9] but in game 6 in Dallas, the Devils wound up closing the series 4–2.[10]

Modano averaged 78 points per season from 1996–2002, and was also one of the NHL's top forwards in plus/minus over that span (his +43 in 1997 was second only to John LeClair's +44 mark). Modano's career high for points in a game is six (2–4–6) against the Anaheim Ducks, and he has seven career hat tricks. His only career fight was against Rod Brind'Amour. He was also a candidate for the Frank J. Selke Trophy (2001), and the Lady Byng Trophy (2003).

As the long-time face of the Dallas franchise, he has recorded over 1,000 NHL points and became the captain of the Stars in 2003. During the 2005 offseason, Modano contemplated signing with the Boston Bruins, but he decided to stay with the Stars after owner Tom Hicks got involved. Modano would sign a five-year contract extension with Dallas on August 5, 2005. On September 29, 2006, Brenden Morrow replaced him as the Stars' captain; Modano served an alternate captain from that time until 2010, a role in which he had previously served from 1995 to 2003.

Modano scored his 500th career regular-season goal on March 13, 2007, with 10:24 left in the 3rd period in a regulation win against Antero Niittymäki of the Philadelphia Flyers with assists by Antti Miettinen and Jon Klemm. He is only the 14th goal scorer to score 500 goals with a single team and the 39th player to reach 500 goals overall.

Modano's shorthanded, record breaking goal, November 7, 2007

On March 17, 2007, in an away game versus the Nashville Predators, Modano scored his 502nd and 503rd career regular-season goals in a 3–2 loss, thus passing Joe Mullen's NHL record (502) for most goals scored by an American-born player.

Modano also holds the NHL all-time record for most points scored by a U.S. born player. He broke the record, which previously belonged to Phil Housley, on November 7, 2007, by scoring two goals in the first five minutes, with the record-breaker being a short-handed goal on a breakaway, against the San Jose Sharks. That night, amongst his congratulatory phone calls was one from Air Force One, U.S. President George W. Bush spoke to him for a few minutes about the record.

November 21, 2007, was "Mike Modano Tribute Night" at American Airlines Center, where Modano was honored by the franchise for his achievements in U.S. hockey. Those who spoke in the pre-game ceremony included Brett Hull, Joe Mullen, Phil Housley, and Stars owner Tom Hicks. Capping off an emotional night, Modano later went on to score the game-tying goal, as well as a shootout goal in a 3–2 Stars victory against the Anaheim Ducks.

With his production declining from 2007–2010, Modano played out the duration of his contract, which expired after the 2009–10 season. In the final game of that season (coincidentally played in Minnesota, where Modano began his pro career), Modano was saluted with a video tribute and a standing ovation, and named the game's first star, skating around the ice wearing a Minnesota North Stars jersey.

Mike Modano with the Red Wings in October 2010.

On June 29, 2010, the Stars announced that Modano would not be re-signed to a contract for the 2010–11 season.[11] After contemplating retirement or signing with the Detroit Red Wings (in his home state) or with the Minnesota Wild (in the state where he began his NHL career),[12] Modano signed a one-year contract with the Red Wings.[13][14][15] As the 9 jersey had been retired by the Red Wings, Modano went for #90 instead.[6] Coach Mike Babcock expressed a desire for Modano to center Detroit's third line with Dan Cleary and Jiří Hudler.[16]

At 5:35 of the first period of Detroit's 2010–11 home opener, on just his second shift, Modano took a pass from Cleary and beat Anaheim goaltender Jonas Hiller for his first goal as a Red Wing.[17]

• East First All-Star Team (WHL) – 1989
• NHL All-Rookie Team – 1990
• NHL All-Star Games – 1993, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003 (as the Western Conference team captain), 2004, 2007 (as the Special Ambassador), 2009
• Stanley Cup champion – 1999
• NHL Second All-Star Team – 2000
• Dallas Stars #9 jersey retired – 2014[34]
• Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2014

• Goals by a player born in the United States (561)
• Points by an American-born player (1374)
• Playoff points by an American-born player, career (146)
• Games played by an American-born forward (1499)

• Games played, regular season and playoffs (1459, 174)
• Goals, regular season and playoffs (557, 58)
• Assists, regular season and playoffs (802, 87)
• Points, regular season and playoffs (1359, 145)