Mike Modano Michael Thomas Modano , Jr . ( born June 7 1970 , in Livonia , Michigan ) is a retired professional hockey player who played the majority of his career for the Dallas Stars of the National Hockey League . He is the all - time goal - scoring and points leader amongst American - born players in the NHL . Playing career . Mike Modano played 20 of his 21 NHL seasons with the Stars franchise . At the age of 17 , he was the first overall draft pick in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft , an honor shared by only 5 other Americans : Brian Lawton ( 1983 ) , Bryan Berard ( 1995 ) , Rick DiPietro ( 2000 ) , Erik Johnson ( 2006 ) and Patrick Kane ( 2007 ) . Modano won the Stanley Cup in 1999 with the Stars , putting together consecutive seasons of over twenty playoff points in 1999 and 2000 . He has also played in the 1991 and 2000 championship finals . Modano has also been a finalist for the Calder Memorial Trophy ( 1990 ) , the Frank J . Selke Trophy ( 2001 ) , and the Lady Byng Trophy ( 2003 ) . He lost the Calder Memorial Trophy , awarded to the year ' s best rookie , to 31 - year - old Sergei Makarov ; because of this , the NHL imposed an age barrier for Calder candidates the following year . His best statistical seasons were in 1992 - 93 and 1993 - 94 , when he had 93 points each . During the 1993 - 94 season , the franchise ' s first in Dallas , Modano recorded a personal - best 50 goals . His career high for points in a game is 6 ( 2 - 4 - 6 ) against the Anaheim Ducks . Modano has 7 career hat tricks . 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 . On August 5 , 2005 , he signed a 5 - year contract extension with Dallas . On September 29 , 2006 , he was replaced as the Stars ' captain by Brenden Morrow , and was an alternate captain , a role in which he had previously served from 1995 to 2003 . Modano was the last remaining North Stars player to play with the Dallas Stars . Jere Lehtinen , who was drafted in 1992 when the franchise was still in the Twin Cities , never played an NHL game until the 1995 - 96 season , more than two years after the move . On January 21 , 2007 , the NHL announced Modano as the Special Ambassador to the 2007 NHL All - Star Celebration , thanks to his numerous contributions towards bringing the 55th National Hockey League All - Star Game to Dallas and also for his contributions to Dallas hockey as a whole . Modano , the Stars ' all - time leader in several statistical categories and a member of the franchise for the entirety of his 17 - year career , appeared at selected All - Star events and dropped the puck in a ceremonial face - off prior the game on January 24 , 2007 . 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 Niittymaki 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 , thus passing Joe Mullen ' s NHL record ( 502 ) for most goals scored by an American - born player . The Predators organization drew criticism from around the league after failing to mention the breaking of this record . Modano now 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 . November 21 , 2007 was " Mike Modano Tribute Night " , where Modano was honoured 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 owner Tom Hicks . Modano later went on to score the game - tying goal in a 2 - 1 victory against the Anaheim Ducks . Modano indicated in interviews that he intended to play out the duration of his contract , which expired after the 2009 - 2010 season . The Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk decided not to resign the 40 - year - old center after the 2009 - 2010 season . Modano played his final home game April 8th , 2010 against the Anaheim Ducks assisting on Jamie Benn ' s first period goal , scoring the game tying goal in the third period on a deflection , and scoring the winning goal in the shootout . Modano collected 1st star of the game honors for his efforts . Modano played his final game as a Dallas Star April 10 , 2010 against the Minnesota Wild . Personal life . During the Thanksgiving of 2006 , Modano proposed to his on and off girlfriend of 4 years , Willa Ford . Modano and Ford were married in a small ceremony in Athens , Texas on August 25 , 2007 . Modano has two golden retrievers , Scout and Bella . Modano is the founder and current Vice President of the Mike Modano Foundation , which raises awareness and funding for organizations offering education and assistance to children and families affected by child abuse . Records . " ( as of last completed NHL season ) " International play . Played for the United States in : International statistics