In 1995–96, McCabe began his NHL career with the Islanders. He recorded 23 points in his rookie season before being traded to the Vancouver Canucks midway through his third year (along with Todd Bertuzzi and a third-round draft pick in 1998, used to select Jarkko Ruutu) in exchange for Trevor Linden. He played one-and-a-half seasons with the Canucks before being traded to the Chicago Blackhawks on the day of the 1999 NHL Entry Draft in a bid by Canucks general manager Brian Burke to draft Daniel and Henrik Sedin second and third overall, respectively. McCabe was packaged with Vancouver's first-round draft pick in 2000 in exchange for Chicago's first-round pick in 1999.