Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and raised in Thorold, Ontario, Nolan was selected No. 1 by the Quebec Nordiques at the 1990 NHL Draft after he scored 51 goals in 58 games during his second season with Cornwall of the Ontario Hockey League.

He made the Nordiques as an 18-year-old in 1990-91 but scored three goals and 13 points in 59 games.

But Nolan scored 42 goals and 73 points and had 183 penalty minutes the following season, establishing himself as a true power forward. He followed that with 36 goals and 77 points in 1992-93, helping the Nordiques qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 1986-87.

Injuries limited Nolan to six games in 1993-94, but he was healthy again in 1994-95 and helped the Nordiques finish first in the Eastern Conference by scoring 30 goals during the lockout-shortened season.

He moved with the Nordiques to Denver in the summer of 1995, but the renamed Colorado Avalanche traded him to the San Sharks on Oct. 26, 1995.

Nolan is probably best remembered for his "called shot" at the 1997 NHL All-Star Game while he was a member of the hometown Sharks; he had already scored two goals when he raced in alone against Eastern Conference goalie Dominik Hasek, pointed at the top right corner and beat Hasek with a shot inside the post at 17:57 of the third period to complete a hat trick.

Nolan played eight seasons in San Jose and set NHL career highs in goals (44) and points (84) in 1999-2000. He scored at least 20 goals six times for the Sharks before he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 5, 2003.

He remained with the Maple Leafs through 2003-04, then missed the 2005-06 season after having knee surgery. After scoring 16 goals for the Coyotes in 2006-07, Nolan played one season with the Calgary Flames and two with the Minnesota Wild; he scored his 400th NHL goal against the Sharks on March 10, 2009. Nolan then played in Switzerland in 2010-11 before retiring on Feb. 7, 2012 after signing a one-day contract with the Sharks.

Nolan finished his NHL career with 885 points (422 goals, 463 assists) and 1,793 penalty minutes in 1,200 games, as well as 40 points (21 goals, 19 assists) in 65 playoff games. He also helped Canada end a 50-year Olympic gold medal drought in 2002.