DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings, for a while, appeared to be Mike Modano's only option if he decides to continue playing.

But now, other clubs are calling the future Hall of Famer and the opportunity to be the third-line center on a Stanley Cup-contending team in his hometown might not be enough to lure Modano to Detroit.

Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said he spoke with Modano's agent, Mike Liut, on Monday and was told the 40-year-old center is "going through the process'' of deciding what to do. Holland was not given a time frame for a decision.

The Red Wings are up against the salary cap and don't have as much money to offer as some other clubs. And Modano, whose wife, Willa Ford, is an actress, might prefer to play in California.

The San Jose Sharks and Minnesota Wild have confirmed interest. The Anaheim Ducks also might be in the mix.

Liut has not returned calls seeking comment.

Holland said he will continue to wait and that Modano's indecision is not preventing him from signing anybody else. He said it was not his priority to sign a forward heading into free agency because the Red Wings have a full complement (14 after signing their restricted free agents).

But when the Dallas Stars decided not to re-sign Modano, the Red Wings made an aggressive pitch to bring home the Westland native.

"We get good mileage out of veteran players. I'm confident if we got Mike Modano, we can get the most out of him,'' Holland said. "I think it would be a good boost for our team and our city.

"But we don't have much cap space. It's a hard cap.''

The Red Wings aren't likely to increase their offer, believed to be in the $1 million to $1.5 million range.

They have 20 players signed for $55.7 million. The cap is $59.4 million, and Holland will stay about $700,000 below the cap to be able to recall a player from Grand Rapids if the Red Wings have a slew of short-term injuries.

That leaves about $3 million to spend, not counting the salary of the player they would move to make room for Modano.

The Red Wings still must re-sign forwards Darren Helm and Justin Abdelkader in addition to defenseman Derek Meech. Holland said he expects Meech to sign a one-year deal by the end of the week, before a scheduled July 20 arbitration hearing.

Holland would like to sign a defenseman to compete for a spot on the third pairing but said there is no urgency.

"If we find a player we like at a price we like, we'll do it,'' Holland said. "If not, we'll go to camp with Meech, (Doug) Janik, (Brendan) Smith, (Jakub) Kindl, and they can battle it out.''

If the Red Wings don't land Modano, they might wait until August to move on another free agent.

"There are some players we're interested in. They obviously don't have interest in us now because of our cap situation,'' Holland said. "That doesn't mean they won't have interest in us three or four weeks from now.

"If not, we're fine with it. If we do nothing, I'm prepared to start training camp tomorrow. At some point in time, we have to play the kids. We're in no position to overpay somebody.''

Smith injures shoulder

Holland said the shoulder injury

sustained Sunday is not serious.

"He's got a mild shoulder separation. Doctors told him to take it easy the next two, three weeks in training,'' Holland said Monday. "He'll be 100 percent ready for the start of training camp. But it is close to a month lost in upper-body strength training.''