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Photo by Tom Sellwood One of the memories that f lashes in Modano's mind when he rolls around town is the dif- ferent restaurants and shops he'd frequent from 1989-93. One was Granny's Donuts in West St. Paul. "It was opened by an old couple in 1987, and it 's the best donuts I've ever had in my life," Modano said. Back in his North Stars playing days, he'd run to the donut shop after practice, so he couldn't believe in September when he discovered one of his old favorite spots still exist- ed. You have to pay cash, but Modano still stopped in and bought 100 donuts to deliver to the Wild offices as a 'thank you' for parading him around town all month. If you didn't know by now, Modano's back. Star Returns North Why Mike Modano, the highest-scoring American in NHL history, has come back to the State of Hockey F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 0 | M H J ON L I N E . C O M 27 T HAS BEEN 26 YEARS since the beloved Minnesota North Stars relocated to Dallas. It has been 26 years since Mike Modano's life, as part of that disappointing move south, was forced to uproot after four years playing for the North Stars at the start of a tremendous Hall of Fame career. Yet, even at 49 years old, every time Modano rides around the State of Hockey, bits and pieces of his early years flash back in his head. He remembers scoring in his first regular-season game against Glenn Healy and the Islanders. He remembers as a teenager living in the Bloomington home of Bill and Debbie Mack and getting to know their young kids, Ryan and Lindsey, and how that allowed him to just worry about hock- ey and not cooking dinner and doing laundry and all the other things that come with being an adult. He remem- bers the North Stars' Cinderella run to the Stanley Cup Final in 1991 and the next couple years of deflation as it became very clear that something was going on behind the scenes that would ultimately force the fran- chise's departure. And he remembers how fun it was to make a cameo with teammate Basil McRae in The Mighty Ducks movie, which was filmed during a five-hour shoot at the Met Center. "I didn't know at the time what kind of cult following it would have, but I have more people mention to me about The Mighty Ducks movie than my actual playing career," Modano said. "Kids watch it to this day. It's just one of those movies that every kid has seen a dozen times." Does he remember his line? "Heard you were a farmer," Modano said, laughing. "Five words I can't screw up." I North Stars GM Lou Nanne selected Mike Modano as the NHL's No. 1 overall pick in 1988. P R E S E N T E D B Y