Minor leagues (1986–1988) 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 after 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 led Modano to play one more season with the Raiders. Helped by the acquisitions of
Joe Nieuwendyk and
Sergei Zubov, Modano led the Stars to the
Central Division title in the
1996–97 season, but they lost in the opening round of the playoffs to the underdog
Edmonton Oilers. In the
1997–98 season, having acquired goaltender
Ed Belfour, the Stars won the
Presidents' Trophy with the league's top regular season record, edging out the
New Jersey Devils. In the
1998 Stanley Cup playoffs the Stars defeated the
San Jose Sharks in six games and the Edmonton Oilers in give games to reached the
Western Conference Finals where they fell in six games to the eventual back-to-back
Stanley Cup champions, the
Detroit Red Wings. In the 1999-2000 season, the Stars captured their fourth straight Pacific Division title, although they only finished third in the Western Conference behind the St. Louis Blues and Detroit Red Wings. In the playoffs, the Stars eliminated the Edmonton Oilers and San Jose Sharks, winning each series in five games. In a rematch with the Colorado Avalanche which went to seven games, the Stars captured their second consecutive Western Conference title. The Stars returned to the finals in
2000 against the
New Jersey Devils. In game 2 Modano assisted on both goals by Hull to give the Stars a 2-1 victory, and in game 5 he deflected Hull's shot to score the winning goal past
Martin Brodeur in triple overtime. In Game 6 in Dallas, Modano assisted on
Mike Keane's game-tying goal, but the Devils scored in double overtime to win the series 4–2. Hull and Modano led the postseason in scoring, with Modano putting together 23 playoff points for the second straight year. Modano averaged 78 points per season from 1996 to 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 finalist for the
Frank J. Selke Trophy (2001), and the
Lady Byng Trophy (2003). In 2002-03, Modano was named the captain of the Western Conference All-Star team.
2005–2010 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. 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. The Stars' game on November 21, 2007, was named "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. In the 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Stars had their deepest playoff run since 2000 when they eliminated the defending champions
Anaheim Ducks, before being eliminated in the Conference Finals by the eventual champions Detroit Red Wings. With his production declining from 2007 to 2010, Modano played out the duration of his contract, which expired after the 2009–10 season. Stars general manager
Joe Nieuwendyk decided to let Modano leave the organization after 22 years with the franchise. Nieuwendyk stated that not offering Modano a new contract was a difficult choice, as he played with Modano and considered him a friend. 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.
Detroit Red Wings (2010–2011) On June 29, 2010, the Stars announced that Modano would not be re-signed to a contract for the 2010–11 season. 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), Modano signed a one-year contract with the Red Wings. As the no. 9 jersey had been retired by the Red Wings, Modano went for no. 90 instead. 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. Modano's time with the Red Wings ended on a sour note when Babcock made him a healthy scratch late in the season, even though the team had clinched a playoff berth, preventing him from reaching the milestone of 1,500 regular-season games played. Modano finished his career with 1,499 regular-season games played. Teammates
Kris Draper and
Nicklas Lidstrom were not pleased with Modano's benching which was an example of Babcock's coaching style which included "mind games". General manager
Ken Holland has said in hindsight that if had he been aware of this snub, he would have intervened to have Modano play in order to reach the milestone. Modano retired after the Red Wings lost in the second round of the playoffs to the San Jose Sharks. ==Post-playing career==