He was selected 116th overall in the 1989 NHL draft by the Detroit Red Wings, and made his NHL debut on October 6, 1992 against Winnipeg, and scored his first goal two weeks later on Oct. 20 against the Jets. That rookie season, Drake contributed 18 goals and 44 points in 72 games.

In 1993-94, he was traded to Winnipeg. In 62 games split between the two teams, he scored 13 goals and 40 points before establishing a career-high 19 goals in 69 games in 1995-96.

In 1996-97, Drake moved with the franchise to Phoenix and in 1999-00, he played 79 games and scored a career-high 30 assists and 45 points and had five game-winning goals. On June 23, 2000, Drake's rights were selected in the Expansion Draft by the Columbus Blue Jackets. On July 1, however, he signed as an unrestricted free agent with the St. Louis Blues and stayed with the organization for six seasons. Drake achieved a career high in goals with 20 in 2002-03 and was named captain of the Blues from 2005-06 to 2006-07.

Following his stint in St. Louis, Drake was signed as a free agent by the Red Wings on July 9, 2007 retuning to the club that originally had drafted the gritty forward. Before signing, Drake had considered retiring from the league but decided to return in an effort to finally capture the Stanley Cup. A little less than a year later, that decision paid off big time. After dominating the league during the regular season, Drake and the Red Wings beat the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals giving the Trail, B.C., native his first Stanley Cup. During the on ice post-game celebrations Detroit captain Nicklas Lidstrom passed the Stanley Cup to Drake first. With his ultimate goal in hockey accomplished, Drake called it a career on July 15, 2008.

Courtesy of the Hockey Hall of Fame