Jim Cummins was born on May 17, 1970 in Dearborn, Michigan. The 6'2" right winger played his collegiate hockey with the Michigan State University Spartans of the NCAA. He was Selected by the New York Rangers in the 4th round, 67th overall in 1989. Before he had played a single professional game, he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings with Kevin Miller and Dennis Vial for fellow tough guy Joey Kocur and Per Djoos. After playing on 8 games in two seasons with the Red Wings, Cummins was on the move again in 1993; traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for Greg Johnson and a swap of picks. His stay in Philly was even more brief, traded in 1994 along with a draft pick to the Tampa Bay Lightning for Rob DiMao.
By 1995 Cummins was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks with Tom Tiley and Jeff Buchanan for Paul Yserbart and Rich Sutter. His stint in Chicago was the longest with one team in his pro-career. In the almost four years in the Windy City, Jim established himself as a legitimate NHL enforcer. By 1998 his time had once again come to an end in Chicago, traded by Blackhawks with Keith Carney to the Phoenix Coyotes for Jayson More and Chad Kilger. A year later he was out of Phoenix, this time going to the Montreal Canadiens for a draft pick. After playing the role of tough guy in Montreal for just 47 games, he moved on to the Anaheim Mighty Ducks before being traded to the New York Islanders for David Roche. Jim Cummins spent a year with the Colorado Avalanche and was last known to have been in the Carolina Hurricanes organization.