Pat Hickey played his junior hockey with the Hamilton Red Wings of the OHA from 1970-73. Hickey was drafted in the second round, No. 30 overall, by the New York Rangers and in the second round No. 18 overall by the Toronto Toros of the WHA, both in 1973. Hickey chose to play in the WHA and during two seasons in the WHA he established himself as one of the quickest around from his forward position. The Rangers still held Hickey's rights and he joined New York in the 1976 season. By the 1977-78 and 1978-79 seasons, he found his niche, scoring 73 and 75 points, respectively. Hickey stayed with the Rangers through the 1979 campaign before he traded to the Colorado Rockies and then the Toronto Maple Leafs. He then bounced around with the Rangers again and the Quebec Nordiques before finishing his career with the St. Louis Blues. Hickey played from 1982-85 with the Blues, scoring 43 points. He also competed in 14 playoff games with St. Louis. Hickey played in 644 career NHL regular season games, scoring 404 points.