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Modano signs one-year $2.5M deal with the Red Wings
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By Jim Kelly
August 7, 2010
Detroit, MI — There aren't many happy endings in the National Hockey League these days.
It's a salary-capped world and that means most decisions are made for and about money.
Players realize that, so do general managers and even the occasional enlightened owner. When it comes to the bottom line, hard decisions are going to have to be made just ask Ilya Kovalchuk (currently a free agent facing arbitration), Antti Niemi (a Stanley Cup winning goal now separated from his team because of an arbitration award and its impact on the Chicago Blackhawks, Jaroslav Halak (a goalie who thought he played his way to the top for the Montreal Canadiens only to be traded because of what he might have earned in his next negotiation) and, as you will see a little farther down in this column, Tim Kennedy (a third-line forward in his home town of Buffalo New York who was turned away by the club because he took it to arbitration and won a mere $200,000 than the club was willing to pay).
So we here at SI.com, who do more often than not dabble in the negative side of the sport, will take a pause here to mention that it all seems to be going well for Mike Modano, the highest-scoring American-born hockey player ever to grace the League.
It's likely it didn't seem that away at first. A legend in Dallas and, arguably, the No. 1 reason the franchise was able to both establish itself and find success in the Southwest, Modano had a right to think that what likely would be his last season ever in the NHL would be spend with the Stars. It was perhaps a rude awakening when former teammate Joe Nieuwendyk, a player with whom Modano had won the franchise's only Stanley Cup back in 1999 told him he was finished there. It wasn't the words of a good-intended friend trying to ease Modano into a reality he knew was upon him, it was the words of the newly minted GM. Nieuwendyk had been charged with turning in his skates and running a now-troubled franchise and he made it clear to Modano that it was in the Stars best interests -- as well as Modano's -- to either retire or seek out another team.
Tough to take, especially if you subscribe to the theory that Modano did more to build the franchise than Nieuwendyk or any other player who ever wore the green, white and gold, but Modano took the message in the way it was intended and after taking some time to make up his mind about where to play or even if he should play one more year, this week opted to sign with the Detroit Red Wings.
It's a good fit for hockey, it's a good fit for Detroit, it's even good for the Stars who need to get past their past in order to look ahead to their future.
Most of all, however, it's a best case scenario for Modano.
Though he is closely associated with Minnesota having given the North Stars a measure of fame and success in his early years in the game, Modano chose a different homecoming of sorts.
For one thing, the Red Wings wanted him and that helps a lot when a player is nearing the end of his time in the game. Having a team -- a very good team -- that still thinks you can play at 40 years old is a nice addition to the confidence box. For another, Detroit is really the place where it all began.
Modano, who will make the announcement official at a press conference on Friday, said he thought about other teams, including the Wild in Minnesota and several other clubs, but Detroit made the decision an easy one for him.
"Detroit pushed very hard from the start," Modano told Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News. "They want me there, they think I can help, and they're very open about it. That was neat. It's such a good organization and they really, really believe they're going to have a great team this year. They said the injuries were ridiculous last year, and they're ready to bounce back from that. I really think they're a team where you can think about winning it all.''
Nice thoughts, but there's more at play here.
Modano was born in the Detroit area. He played much of his youth hockey there and he even played some games at Joe Louis Arena for Little Caesars, the pizza operation that sponsored hundreds of kids in youth hockey and whose owner, Mike Ilitch, later bought the Red Wings and turned them into perhaps the most admired professional sports team of the last two decades.
That's like playing for family and the bonus is that Modano's mom and dad still live in the Detroit area and can now watch their son play whenever he's at home.
And once the push was on, the Red Wings were relentless.
They didn't just call and express an interest, they sent a plane for him and brought him into the marketplace to make the push. It wasn't a hard sell what with 15 division championships and four Stanley Cups over the last two decades. More importantly, they weren't asking him to be a hero or the face of the franchise. There are enough good players in Detroit to take care of that, Modano needed only to fit in, to contribute as a two-way forward and an exceptionally experienced and successful player.
It's part of what Detroit does. They build a good core and then they add to it with a mix of quality young players and some veterans they know still have a desire to succeed. Modano isn't a kid anymore and he has his Stanley Cup ring, but there's nothing wrong with wanting one more and if a team is willing to pay you to play, why would you not want to try, especially with a successful franchise in the place where it all began.
The deal is a reported $2.5 million for one season, something the Stars likely could afford, but just didn't see as necessary. It's a bit of a tough cap hit for the Red Wings, but they can make it work and they think they've got a bargain in the process.
Modano likely will be on a checking line with Jiri Hudler and Dan Cleary, but those two got plenty of ice time last season both as checkers and going out against third defensive pairings. Having Modano between them raises the experience level considerably and could lead to more goals and more points for all even in the occasional "clutch" situations.
Playing in a division with Chicago and a conference that includes the still good Sharks and the seemingly rising Vancouver Canucks, it's more of an opportunity than the Stars could offer. Having an in depth knowledge of the strengths and, especially, the weaknesses of former Dallas goalie Marty Turco, newly signed by the Blackhawks, won't hurt either.
It's not all that bad for Dallas either. The Stars are, at best, a rebuilding team that is in the beginning stages of being solid. It would be hard for Modano to be a part of that at this point in his career. Modano will be missed by the fans there, but there really wasn't much he could do to help the club and there was a very good chance he would have been frustrated to the point of anger and perhaps a forced retirement should he be asked to do the things he can no longer do as an athlete past his prime.
He told Heika: "It's still a little disappointing and a little strange, but I've gotten over it as time has gone on. I know what Joe is thinking, and there's no hard feelings there. He has to do what he has to do. But, I want to play, and I think I can still play, and I really think Detroit is the best place to do that. They have a lot of guys who are closer to my age, and I just feel like it's a good fit for me. I'm excited. You look at that team and the way they play hockey, and you get excited about how you fit and how it would be to play on that team. I'm looking forward to it.''
It may only be as part of a rocking chair tour, a goodbye Mike tour across the NHL final stage, but to be able to do it at home and with a team that is good enough to win, maybe even win it all, well, as happy endings go nowadays, that's not all that hard to take.
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