How Mike Modano fell in love with the sport of hockey

Back in the day, one of my usual interview questions in the Stars dressing room would be, "What would you be doing if you weren’t a pro hockey player?"

Some would say teach. Some would say construction. Some would say fireman or policeman.

Mike Modano was unique.

“I don’t know, pro baseball, I guess. Or maybe pro tennis . . . or pro golf.”

Modano had those options. He was that great of an athlete. Modano’s childhood home in Livonia, Michigan was filled with baseball trophies. He was Michigan’s representative in a regional Punt, Pass and Kick competition. He played No. 1 doubles as a freshman in high school before heading out to play his Junior Hockey in Prince Albert. And his best game might still be golf.

So how did he decide on hockey? It’s an interesting story of kismet and construction, and an undeniable feel once he had finally strapped on the gear.

“My dad was in construction and neither of us had any hockey background whatsoever,” Modano said of the unlikely start. “But there were a bunch of brothers who worked for my dad in the summer, and they all loved hockey. So, my dad was frustrated because I was having a hard time keeping attention at school or in other sports. I was all over the place. I can see that in my boys now. But these brothers told my dad that I should try hockey, because it just really is a great outlet for energy. And as soon as I got out there, that was it. I loved it so much and it was all day, every day after that.”

Some 50 years later, they are erecting a statue of Modano outside of the American Airlines Center and honoring his legacy as one of the pioneers who helped bring an unknown sport to the state of Texas.

“It is pretty strange how this all happened,” Modano said. “It’s times like this you kind of get to relive it all and really enjoy everything.”

After getting on the ice in suburban Detroit, young Mike fell in love with the game. He would come home from school and put on his hockey equipment just so he would be ready for games or practices. He often slept in the gear, and he quickly recruited his mom Karen to help in training. Modano would play in the backyard and on the lake, but he was a “busy child” so that wasn’t enough. He found a place in the basement where he could shoot pucks against the wall. He got his mom dressed up in whatever could protect her and convinced her to be a makeshift goalie.

“She had old catcher’s gear on and she literally strapped the old Sears catalogs to her shins, had the garbage can lid instead of a stick and she stood in there and really gave me a great target,” Modano said.

Of course, plastic pucks or tennis balls didn’t feel right, so he had to use real ones.

“The cement took a beating, and so did my mom, but she was tough,” Modano said.

And that started the journey. Yes, he stuck with all of his other sports until he couldn’t anymore. And even in his 20-something-year dedication to the ice, he found a way to get in some tennis and golf along the way. When the American Airlines Center opened in 2001, the Stars were given a tour of the Maverick's basketball court. While most of his teammates struggled with the game, Modano was out draining NBA three-pointers with no practice.

That diversity comes in handy these days, as the 53-year-old helps direct his five kids in their budding sports careers. Modano and his wife Allison (a former pro golfer) spend a great deal of time with Jack, Kate, Reese, Luca and Quinn – all 10 years or younger. Their interests range from hockey to football to basketball to tennis to soccer and lacrosse, so that athletic background really comes in handy.

The family lived in the Phoenix area for several years, but Mike currently works for the Wild, so the Modano’s moved to Minnesota last year. He now drives the taxi and offers coaching advice from the sidelines.

“It’s been great for us,” he said. “Allison is the CEO, so I’m just the driver, but it’s fun to have all of the sports. You learn a lot from sports.”

Modano clearly did. It gave him the focus to pursue his dreams and to navigate his future.

He thanks his parents, Mike and Karen, for their dedication and better understands now just how much work it entailed. He also said bringing up his own family is teaching him about making important decisions. When Modano was first getting praise as the “greatest American-born hockey player” a few years back, he opined that had he been born 10 miles away in Ontario, nobody would be making such a big deal. He has since come to grips with the praise and said the process of studying his own feelings have helped him appreciate his upbringing.

“I kind of let that go,” Modano said. “It’s such a Canadian sport and you do hear things about Canadian or American, but looking back I was very lucky to be a part of USA Hockey in that era. Not only did I get to grow up in a great city and a great country, but playing for Team USA was so special.”

Modano even pointed out had he not gone first overall in 1988, he might have been taken by Vancouver or Quebec, and that would have changed the journey entirely.

“I could have gone to Vancouver or Quebec, and that would have been a lot different than Minnesota,” he said of the first four seasons with the North Stars. “I definitely wanted to stay in the U.S., so it all came together in a good way.”

Modano has competed 11 times for Team USA, winning gold and silver in the World Cup of Hockey and another silver in the 2002 Olympics. He said he doesn’t worry so much about who gets labeled as the best American-born player, but rather appreciates the level of competitors who have been his teammates and friends.

“It was a lot of fun,” Modano said. “Back in the day, you actually hated guys on the other teams, it was that competitive. But then when we came together on USA Hockey, it was really a lot of fun. It was great getting to play off of guys you hated and start to respect what they do.”

Modano said he loves looking back at the great players he played beside, and adds that the pursuit of statistics and accolades will go on forever.

“You look at guys like Chris Chelios and Brian Leetch and Phil Housley, Jeremy Roenick, Keith Tkachuk, Mike Richter. It’s so generational, too,” he said. “I’m just proud to be a part of it. The game now is so much faster and more skilled, so you just appreciate what the players do. I honestly think Patrick Kane will go down as the top American once he passes those records of mine, and I think that’s great. I like the fact the game continues to grow.”

Since the family’s move to Minnesota, Modano is back right in the middle of a hockey-crazed community, and he said he’s enjoying it on many different levels. And all of this will come flooding over him when his statue is unveiled on March 16 before the game against Los Angeles.

“The whole process has been unreal,” he said. “Finishing my career, going into the Hockey Hall of Fame or the U.S. Hall of Fame, getting my number retired, it’s very emotional. And now this one has to be the last. It’s such a great honor and I’m very excited about it.”

For Modano, it will be a melding of his time in Detroit, Minnesota and Dallas. It will be a reminder of what he and his teammates have built, and it will be a chance to hand down to his children some of the grace his parents gave him.

“It’s hard to even imagine,” he said. “I started playing this sport because I loved it, and it’s given me so many good things over the years, and then to get rewarded or remembered, it’s pretty surreal. I wasn’t looking for anything in return, I just wanted to play and have fun when I was a kid. So all of this is just amazing.”

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.