Patrick is part of a famous athletic family, but not the one most hockey fans would expect.

He's not related to Lester or Frank Patrick, patriarchs of one of the most influential families in the history of the sport. Rather, he's the son of Steve Patrick, a former star quarterback in the Canadian Football League. James' brother, Steve Patrick, also played in the NHL; the two were briefly together with the New York Rangers. He is also the uncle of Philadelphia Flyers center Nolan Patrick.

The Rangers selected James Patrick with the No. 9 pick in the 1981 NHL Draft. But he didn't turn pro until after the 1984 Sarajevo Olympics, when he played for Canada. That followed two seasons at the University of North Dakota and one with Canada's national team.

Patrick scored his first NHL goal on March 17, 1984 at the Philadelphia Flyers, and soon became one of the League's most consistent offensive defensemen, scoring at least 10 goals in seven consecutive seasons from 1985-86 through 1991-92, when he had an NHL career-high 71 points (14 goals, 57 assists) to help New York win the Presidents' Trophy as the League's top regular-season team.

However, Patrick battled injuries in 1992-93 and dropped to 26 points (five goals, 21 assists) in 60 games. When he started slowly the following season, the Rangers traded him to the Hartford Whalers on Nov. 2, 1993. In turn, the Whalers traded him to the Calgary Flames on March 10, 1994.

He played four more seasons with the Flames, missing most of 1996-97 with a knee injury, before signing with the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 7, 1998. Patrick played his final six NHL seasons with the Sabres, never scoring more than five goals or 16 points in a season, before announcing his retirement on Sept. 8, 2005 at the age of 42.

Patrick finished his NHL career with 639 points (149 goals, 490 assists) in 1,280 games, as well as 38 points (six goals, 32 assists) in 117 Stanley Cup Playoff games.