After graduating with a degree in business administration, Adams returned to Barrie and began playing for the local senior hockey team, also named the Barrie Flyers, when it was founded in 1966. Adams played for the Flyers for a decade, becoming the team's all-time leader in games (370), goals (213), assists (353) and points (566). He helped the team win the Allan Cup in 1974 as well as three other league championships in his ten seasons. Adams briefly left the team in 1970 to play with the Canadian national team but a series of decisions led Canada, who was initially supposed to host the 1970 Ice Hockey World Championships, to not even participate in the tournament.