Stevens followed up a junior career with the Oshawa Generals in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) by playing four seasons for the Hershey Bears of the AHL.

In 1996, Stevens signed once more with the Flyers, and was named the first captain of its expansion farm team, the Philadelphia Phantoms.

[1] Stevens played in 53 NHL games for the Flyers and the Whalers scoring no goals, ten assists and recording 48 penalty minutes.

Stevens was forced to retire as a player in 1999 due to a career-ending eye injury, but remained with the Phantoms as an assistant coach.

During his six-season tenure as coach, the Phantoms made the playoffs four times and won their second Calder Cup title in 2005.

Stevens was fired by the Flyers on December 4, 2009, after a 13–11–1 start and with a team expected to be a Stanley Cup favorite sitting in 10th place in the Eastern Conference.

He then returned to his post as Assistant Coach, a position he held when the Kings won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history at the season's end.

John Jr. signed with the New York Islanders of the NHL after finishing his college career and is currently playing on their AHL affiliate team, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

[12] John's younger son, Nolan Stevens, played for the US National Development Team in the USHL, before joining his brother at Northeastern.