It has been an incredible season for the Detroit Red Wings, and one full of monumental moments. The team retired Sergei Fedorov's jersey earlier this season, and Dylan Larkin also tied one of Fedorov's franchise records. Now, fans at Little Caesars Arena could see more history on Thursday night.
With one point against the Washington Capitals, Patrick Kane will pass Mike Modano as the top scoring US-born player in NHL history, according to NHL.com.
In a 3-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday, Kane had an assist on an Alex DeBrincat goal, giving Kane his 23rd assist of the season, and the 1,374th point of his career. That tied Modano for the most points by a US-born player in the league's history. He has played 158 fewer games than Modano to get to that point.
Kane will not be the highest-scoring player who represented the United States. That belongs to Brett Hull, who was born in Ontario, Canada, but is a U.S. citizen and represented the US internationally. Had he been born during the regular season, instead of August, Hull might have the record for American-born players. His father, the legendary Bobby Hull, was playing for the Chicago Blackhawks at the time, although the elder Hull was also born in Canada and represented Canada internationally.
Kane's 1,374 career points place him tied for 27th all-time. It is also fourth among active players, behind only Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby, and Alex Ovechkin, the latter who will be on the ice with Kane on Thursday night.
Kane and Ovi sharing the ice is also a historical moment. This will be the first time since 1997 that the all-time US-born points leader and the NHL record holder for goals scored have faced off. The game in 1997 featured Joe Mullen, who is now seventh on the list of US-born points leaders, facing Wayne Gretzky, who saw his NHL goals record broken by Ovechkin last season. Mullen did not have a point in that game, while Gretzky managed a goal and an assist.
At some point soon, Kane will make history, whether it be in this game or another one in the near future. The Buffalo native likely has another goal in mind: lifting the Stanley Cup for a fourth time.
The Red Wings are 32-17-5 on the season, placing them in second in the Atlantic Division, and a point behind the Tampa Bay Lightning. Puck drop against the Capitals is set for 7:30 p.m. ET from downtown Detroit.
