Stefanos Lekkas is no stranger to roller coaster seasons at the pro level.

As he navigates through another one, he can’t help but reflect on the one before it, a year that took him all the way to the National Hockey League in his first full professional season.

Now, with the Wheeling Nailers, the 26-year-old netminder found himself with the ECHL’s Fort Wayne Komets to start the 2020-21 season but signing a professional try-out contract with the AHL’s Rochester Americans. Lekkas climbed all the way up to the Buffalo Sabres, for whom he backed up for four games in early May without getting to appear in a game.

“It was all really cool,” Lekkas told FloHockey via cell phone. 

“The entire process of it, I was fortunate to be a part of it, and it was a lot of fun. It makes you want to keep working to try to get back there. It was, honestly, just a crazy year, and ending like that was something that I can always remember. I wouldn’t say (getting back) is my main motivation, it’s just wanting to be continuously playing better and playing well.”

Hopefully for Lekkas’ sake, the only movement ahead for him would be a return to the AHL, as he’s already played for three ECHL teams this year. He was dealt to Orlando on November 9 after just one game for the Komets this season, and was then traded just 13 days later to the Nailers after again playing just one game for the Solar Bears.

“Last year was eye-opening with how quick things can change, how quick you might be moving,” Lekkas said. “So, this year, it’s been different circumstances, but I’m still pretty comfortable packing light at times. I had a coach tell me once that you can’t predict anything in pro hockey, and he’s been pretty right about my first two years. It was a little bit frustrating at times, because opportunity didn’t really present itself, but things happen and you just move on from it. Ending up with the Nailers has been great, and I’m just happy to be settled.”

He’s found a home with Wheeling for the time being, however, posting a 10-9-1 mark with a 3.13 goals-against average and .894 save percentage in his first 20 games with the Nailers.

“It’s been great here,” he said. “I think the staff has really trusted me with a big workload, and we’re in a pretty much a playoff push already, even though we’re only halfway through the year, and it’s been real fun just playing a lot of hockey. The last two seasons have definitely had some weird turns, but I’m really happy to be in Wheeling.”

It’s likely the most stability the Illinois native has had since his NCAA days at The University of Vermont, where he was a four-year starter and set a Hockey East record with a whopping 3,913 saves.

“I came out of my college career with almost 140 games played, so I was able to get a lot of chances,” Lekkas said. 

“And playing in Hockey East, too, I think every night you’re playing teams with guys who are in the NHL now or were draft picks, so the competition was great. Going into pro hockey, you see a lot of those same guys and that same skillset. That did help me a lot in turning pro. I think when I entered pro hockey, I knew I had a lot of tools that would be applicable, but as you catch up to the speed, you realize it’s all about controlling plays and slowing things down.