Modano milestone too much for Flyers

DALLAS - Bob Gainey pulled Mike Modano aside early in his career in Minnesota and told the young center what he needed to do to become a player of substance in the NHL.

"Those first few years were eye-openers," Modano recalled. "Bob Gainey realized it. He said, 'I don't want to take away your offense, but defensively, if you are responsible in that end, you'll be playing a long time in this game."

He has played long enough to become the 39th NHL player and just the second American to score 500 goals.

Last night at the American Airlines Center, the 36-year-old Modano scored the decisive goal late in the third period as the Stars defeated the Flyers, 3-2.

"It was an ugly goal," Modano said. "I didn't care how it went in, just get it over. Jon [Klemm] got a shot on net and I was able to get a rebound. It turned out to be important as they kind of gave us a little bit of a scare at the end."

Joey Mullen, with 502 goals, is the other American to reach the milestone. He is now a Phantoms assistant coach.

"I talked to Joey through Nolan Baumgartner," Modano said. "He kind of passed it along to get it done, and good luck."

It was a physical game dominated by the Stars for two periods and the Flyers in the last frame.

Modano tapped in an open rebound in the slot after goalie Antero Niittymaki stopped Klemm's point shot.

Dallas' Jere Lehtinen scored early in the game as the Stars pressed the attack against Niittymaki, who made 30 saves.

Joni Pikanen's first goal in six games at 6 minutes, 23 seconds of the third period tied the game.

Dallas regained the lead when Jussi Jokinen scored in the low slot at 9:02. Modano then got his historic goal 34 seconds later to finish the Flyers off, although Scottie Upshall scored with 1:17 left to make it close.

Modano has missed 23 games with a hip injury and has been slow getting his game back.

"It's been lingering for a while," he said. "The games were kind of dwindling. The season was slipping away. But recently, I felt good. My legs are finally under me and I knew I would get some opportunities and chances."

"He's a pretty impressive guy and he's been a great player for a long time," Flyers coach John Stevens said. "He's made the game look easy. He bought into the defensive style and capitalized on chances there. He's a game-breaker."

Dallas outshot the Flyers by 33-19 overall and by 15-5 in the opening period.

The Stars played like a team going to the playoffs - which they are - while the Flyers resembled one that will be going home.

In November, after he was fired as coach of the Flyers, Ken Hitchcock was asked what made Modano a unique player in his prime.

"Modano could beat you with his speed with and without the puck," said Hitchcock, who coached Modano when the Stars won the Stanley Cup in 1999. "He was a player that could beat you one-on-one. He could back off any defenseman in the league.

"He had the ability to use speed as a forechecking tool to create turnovers in both the offensive and neutral zone. What continues to make him unique is that he is among a handful of players in the league who can shoot the puck with high velocity off the stick hand."

Modano thanked Hitchcock (now the Columbus coach) for having made a difference in his career.

"Dallas resurrected my career after Minnesota," he said. "I felt it was a fresh start. We grew with the fan base down here to a level we never thought would happen."