We've seen one announced retirement this week; that of Blues winger Keith Tkachuk, and one would have to expect, after the Saturday season finale in Minnesota, that of Stars center Mike Modano.
Particularly after Thursday night's heroics at the American Airlines Center in Dallas (the game tying goal, a gorgeous assist on the first goal, and the shootout-winning goal), it is worth a quick retrospective on Modano and his impact on hockey not only in Texas, but in the American South in general.
Drafted first overall by the Minnesota North Stars in 1988, he led the Stars to the Stanley Cup Finals against Pittsburgh in 1991. The North Stars would remain in the MSP area for another season before departing for Dallas.
Hockey had begun to gain a footing in warmer climates, as the Los Angeles Kings had established a solid fan base... but hockey had already failed in Atlanta and Kansas City, and a move to the Sun Belt was regarded as a very risky move. The San Jose Sharks had been established in 1991, but no further south than going to Denver.
In 1992-93, the league also welcomed the Ottawa Senators (a good move) and the Florida Panthers (regarded as a questionable move) to the league, but watched a franchise in a somewhat cornerstone city move to a decidedly huge market, but in a part of the country where hockey had a spotty minor-league footing at best, and certainly no tradition.
Modano wasted very little time in becoming an iconic player, overshadowing 1980 Team USA hero Neal Broten, Oiler/Bruin stalwart Andy Moog, Mark Tinordi, and so forth... his GQ good looks and his torrid scoring pace quickly vaulted him into the hype machine that is the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
So what did this set up? Dallas' quick success at the gate and on ice (winning the 1999 Stanley Cup), combined with a strong marketing campaign (establishing a series of ice rinks in the DFW area called Dr. Pepper StarCenters) made the NHL believe that Sun Belt hockey could work. Within the next few years, there were teams established in Tampa and Nashville, the Hartford Whalers moved to the Raleigh/Durham area, the Nordiques left Quebec for Denver, and the Winnipeg Jets departed Manitoba for Phoenix. Not long after that, Columbus, Minnesota, and Atlanta entered the league.
In addition, hockey (helped by the visibility of the NHL on ESPN) utterly detonated across the Deep South. At its peak, the minor leagues of hockey boasted 7 teams in Louisiana, 3 teams in Mississippi, 3 teams in Alabama, 10-plus teams in Texas, something like 8 teams in Florida, another handful in Georgia, three more in Tennessee, one in Arkansas, and so forth.
Obviously, the fire went out with the combination of the NHL lockout in 1994 and ESPN giving up their contract, and teams began to fold through the end of the 1990s. Many of the Sun Belt teams have struggled at the gate, and there are perpetually rumors of teams folding or being moved to Canada (much of that being wishful thinking by Canadian press, mind you).
Nonetheless, let us return to Modano for the discussion. There are many good teams out there who win a lot of games, score a lot of goals, and enjoy a certain amount of success, but never quite become a household name in their cities. ESPN's John Buccigross chalks that up to a lack of a key iconic player- in whatever role. Mike Modano was and is that guy in the South, and here's the acid test on that. Name me a guaranteed Hall of Famer, an iconic player, for any of the following franchises: Phoenix, Dallas, Nashville, Atlanta, Tampa Bay, Carolina, Florida... did I miss anyone?
Vincent Lecavalier? Sure- but how much national press does he get? Martin St. Louis? Same story. Pavel Bure was that guy in Florida, but made the vast majority of his impact with Vancouver. Paul Kariya could have been that guy in Nashville, but ultimately, same story. Why? Probably the small-market factor- no national coverage, no visibility. You've had some iconic players in Carolina- Rod Brind'Amour, Cam Ward, Eric Staal, Erik Cole- but transcendent?
Jumping to larger markets (Phoenix is #12 in the Nielsen DMA index, Dallas-Fort Worth is #5, and Atlanta is #8), few players have made a Hall of Fame impact in these cities. Dallas has boasted Derian Hatcher, Modano, and Brett Hull... Keith Tkachuk made some impact in Phoenix, but didn't make a name for himself above the Coyotes there. And in Atlanta- with no offense intended to Atlanta sports fans- Atlanta is a distinctly underwhelming sports town.
Modano transcended the sport in football-mad Texas. With his regional appeal in the South, he helped export the sport to a new group of people, and more of the nation got at least some exposure to the sport.
It's not worth popping up numbers of goals and assists for him, as he has one game left, but it's definitely time to pay homage to one of the greatest U.S.-born players in the game, and to thank him for his service to the game and to his fans.
Thanks, Mike. Good luck in the future.
