Kane joins history books by tying Modano's mark for most points among U.S.-born players

DETROIT -- One more point. That’s all Patrick Kane needs to break the NHL record for points by a player born in the United States.

The 37-year-old forward tied Mike Modano when he reached 1,374 points Tuesday.

It wasn’t a storybook moment. The Detroit Red Wings trailed the Los Angeles Kings 2-0 and pulled their goalie. Kane earned a secondary assist on a goal by Alex DeBrincat that cut their deficit to 2-1 with 2:15 to go, and they ended up losing 3-1 at Little Caesars Arena.

“It’s tough right now,” Kane said. “Nothing really went right for us tonight, so it’s tough to really think about right now. But hopefully next game’s a better result and can move past Mike next game, so that’d be nice to do that and do it with a win.”

Still, this was a moment for the history books.

“We have to be human beings about this,” coach Todd McLellan said. “None of us are happy that we lost the game tonight, but he also reached a pretty significant milestone. He’s one away from being on top of that mountain.

“We’re happy for him. We’re excited for him. Twenty years from now, when he’s telling the story, yeah, maybe it was in a loss, but it’s not going to hurt as much.”

Does anyone remember how Modano set the record himself?

Modano entered the 2007-08 season with 1,226 points, six behind Phil Housley.

To promote the passing of the torch, Modano attended a media event at the Empire Hotel in New York with Housley and the previous record holder, Joe Mullen. Another player was invited, an 18-year-old kid who had been selected No. 1 by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2007 NHL Draft. His name? Patrick Kane.

Modano had five points (two goals, three assists) in his first 11 games for the Dallas Stars, putting him on the verge of history.

Then he went three games in a row without a point, the first two at home.

“I think the chase was fun, and then you get down to the last few,” Modano told NHL.com earlier this season. “Then everyone’s mind is on it. Everyone’s asking about it, talking about it. It becomes a little bit more emphasized on a day-to-day basis when you get down to those single digits.

“I was dying to try to get it done in Dallas with the fans at home. But as it goes on, you’re like, ‘Oh, let’s just get this thing done. Wherever, however it gets done, let’s just move on.’”

Finally, Modano passed Housley by scoring two goals in a 3-1 win at the San Jose Sharks on Nov. 7, 2007.

“It was a bit of a relief,” Modano said.

Kane might have set the record by now. He entered the season with 1,343 points, 31 behind Modano, and had 23 points (six goals, 17 assists) in his first 24 games.

But he has missed 15 games with injuries, most recently a six-game absence because of an upper-body injury. Since returning on Dec. 28, Kane has eight points (two goals, six assists) in 15 games.

Both goals came in one game, a 5-1 win against the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 8. The second was the 500th of his career.

Milestones can feel like millstones sometimes. Kane said the record might be in the back of his head a little bit. People keep asking about it and counting down to it.

“Trying not to think about that stuff too much, but it comes up a lot when you’re in between games or on your phone or whatever it may be,” Kane said. “It is what it is. But [it would] definitely be nice to get it done here soon and just worry about maybe some more important things ahead for the rest of the year.”

Detroit (32-17-5) is trying to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in a decade.

Despite the loss Tuesday, the Red Wings are 8-2-1 in their past 11 games and one point behind the Tampa Bay Lightning for the lead the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference.

They host the Washington Capitals on Thursday (7:30 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+).

McLellan compared Kane chasing Modano’s record to Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin chasing Wayne Gretzky’s NHL goals record last season. Washington was excited to see Ovechkin reach 895.

“He provided life to that team, and Kaner’s doing that right now,” McLellan said. “We can’t wait till that moment comes.”

The Red Wings didn’t take a team picture with Kane after the game Tuesday. One more point.

“Tonight was a history-making moment,” defenseman Moritz Seider said. “But I think we all know it’s going to be more special when he breaks it, and hopefully it’s in two nights. I’m definitely looking forward to it. I think we’ll probably have a better celebration with two points in the bank.”