A throwback to March 1994 and a story written by Mike Brophy.
The lone star of the Lone Star State’s NHL team feels right at home.
Home, home on the range.
“You wake up in the morning and it’s 60-75 degrees out; guys with convertibles drive to the rink with the top down and you can wear shorts to practice.” Mike Modano says.
“Some cities, like Minnesota and Winnipeg, it’s so gray…like Russia. You have to go out early to start your car, then let it warm up for 15 minutes. Here you can golf in the winter.
“How could you not like living in Dallas?”
Whether it’s the climate or athletic maturity, Modano has flourished in Texas. He has cut his handicap to a career-low six and raised his goal total to a career-high 36.
If not for six games lost to a knee injury, Modano would be on pace for a 60-goal season and, maybe, the Professional Golfers’ Association tour.
The center will settle for the NHL for now.
Modano is among the game’s best skaters, niftiest puck-carriers and most-feared shooters and ever since he was chosen first overall in the 1988 entry draft, much has been expected of the Michigan native.
Four NHL seasons later, the star in waiting has stopped waiting and is bearing down on greatness.
Playing on a line with left winger Ulf Dahlen and right winger Mike Craig, Modano passed his single-season high of 33 goals in 52 games.
Modano was always a Star, but now he is a star.
“If Dallas beats you, two things probably happened: they got strong goaltending and Mike Modano was one of the three stars,” says Calgary Flames’ pro scout Nick Polano.
The knock on Modano was he wouldn’t go to the net or take a hit to make a play. The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder played on the perimeter. In order to take the next step, he had to change his game.
He knew it and so did his boss.
“People tended to criticize Mike’s defensive game, but that was too much of a cliche, saying offensive players can’t play defense,” says Dallas coach-general manager Bob Gainey. “He plays as well in his end as any 100-plus-point-scoring center in the league.
“What concerned us was his play in the offensive zone when he didn’t have the puck. He had to be available to get the puck and not leave a good offensive position because of impatience. He has learned to let other players work the puck and get it to him.”
Gainey says Modano has scored at least five goals this season on tip-ins cutting to the net.
“From watching games on TV and on video.” Modano says, “I can’t believe the number of goals that are scored from in tight. I still take the odd shot from the outside and I still try to use my speed, but I don’t think I’m predictable anymore.”
Mike ModanoNobody was predicting great things for the Stars this season, but a 16-9-0 record from midDecember through mid-February propelled them into the race for first in the Western Conference.
Modano’s emergence as a legitimate marquee player is one of the key reasons for Dallas’ drive to the top. But the Stars are essentially a team of pluggers that gets by on strong work ethic.
What else would you expect from a Gainey-coached team? The former superstar checker was one of the most industrious players in league history.
Defenseman Mark Tinordi and speedy right winger Russ Courtnall, plus goalies Andy Moog and Darcy Wakaluk, head up a solid supporting cast that has become a popular ice revue in Dallas.
The Stars’ average attendance through 30 home dates was 15,835 or 94 per cent of capacity at Reunion Arena. It’s an improvement over 13,947 in Minnesota last season.
Controversial team owner Norm Green moved the Stars south after 26 years in Bloomington. Green claimed to be losing money at a record pace and grew tired of competing with high school and college hockey for the fans’ affections.
Some believe Green’s principal motivation behind leaving Minnesota was to distance himself from a sexual harassment suit. The owner denies that charge.
Closer to the ice, speculation about a potential franchise shift late last season was blamed for the Stars’ collapse. Minnesota lost 11 of its final 14 regular-season games to drop out of the playoff picture.
Modano was in the midst of a career season when his game collapsed. After netting 32 goals in 68 games, he scored once in his final 14 when the team needed him most.
“It was a lousy way to end the season,” Modano says. “I had my best year in terms of goals and points, but because of the way things ended, the whole season was a waste.”
Andy Moog is giving the Stars the goaltending they expected when they acquired him. (Tim Parker)Gainey’s off-season mission was to make a change in net and add experience on the blueline.
He got Moog from the Boston Bruins for goalie Jon Casey and added veteran defensemen Grant Ledyard and Paul Cavallini. Experienced forwards Dean Evason and Paul Broten also joined the team.
Gainey has since added tough guys Jim Mc-Kenzie and Gord Donnelly to complement penalty king Shane Churla. The Stars are the NHL’s fourth-most penalized team.
“If your team doesn’t have size and strength, teams that do have those things tend to use them against you,” Gainey says. “Toughness is no longer a concern of ours.”
Although the Stars made it to the Stanley Cup final three seasons ago with a sub-.500 record, the importance of the regular season is not lost on Gainey.
Nor does he think, just because the season has gone well to date, the Stars have it made.
“You play every game to win,” Gainey says, “If you blow a tire at the end of the season and something goes wrong, you can leave with your integrity intact. We have to complete this season before we can stand up and beat our chests about anything.”
Can a team miss the playoffs, move to another city and then win the Stanley Cup the next season?
“The way we’re playing, anything is possible,” Modano says.
How the West could be won
A good indicator of how a team might fare in the playoffs is its record against other top contenders. This is how teams in the Western Conference with records of .500 or better did against other Western Conference teams as of Feb. 20. The Toronto Maple Leafs lead the way with 39 of a possible 66 points.
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