He played for the University of North Dakota from 1978 to 1982. Undrafted by any NHL club, Sykes was signed as a free agent by the Los Angeles Kings in 1982. It took him two seasons to make the Kings roster. He scored a career-high 20 goals in 1985-86 and played for Canada in the 1986 World Championship. Sykes was demoted to the New Haven Nighthawks in 1988 and the next season was traded to the Winnipeg Jets for Brad Jones. He played three seasons for the Jets and retired in 1992. In 456 NHL games he scored 79 goals and 85 assists.