Carrying on the tradition of outstanding hockey which was established by his father Lee Sr. during the 1950s, Lee Jr. began his hockey career in the Current River Minor Hockey program during the 1960s. From these early beginnings, Lee would develop into one of northwestern Ontario's finest defencemen, enjoying an outstanding 13-year career in the National Hockey League.

At the age of only 14, Lee moved from the minor hockey leagues into the junior ranks with the Port Arthur Marrs and Vulcans. In 1972 it was onto the OHL where he captained the Oshawa Generals under fellow Thunder Bay great Gus Bodnar. His entry into the professional ranks came in 1974 when he was claimed 11th overall and first by the Buffalo Sabres in the underage draft. During his five years with the Sabres, Lee was named the Sabres Most Improved Player for 1975-76 and their Most Underrated Player for 1976-77.

In the NHL expansion draft of 1979, Lee was claimed by the Edmonton Oilers, a team he would go on to enjoy an outstanding record of success with for 8 seasons. Chosen the Oilers Most Valuable Defenceman for the 1980-81 season, Lee captained such players as Gretzky, Messier and Kurri from 1980-83 and earned back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Oilers in 1984 and 1985.

Midway through the 1986-87 season Lee was traded to the Buffalo Sabres. At the time the Oilers' Chief Scout Barry called it the toughest trade he ever had to make "because Lee Fogolin had the most to do with establishing the character of (this) hockey club". Lee retired from the NHL following the 1986-87 season with a record of 13 seasons, 924 games played, 44 goals and 195 assists.

Inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame, September 25th, 1993