(Rochester, NY) – The Rochester Americans announced that the team has signed forwards Brent Gates and Brendan Warren and goaltender Stefanos Lekkas to Professional Tryouts (PTO).
Gates, 23, joins the Amerks after splitting the 2020-21 season with the Indy Fuel and Tulsa Oilers (ECHL), recording 21 points on eight goals and 13 assists in 35 games. The 6-foot-2, 196-pound forward has also notched an assist in two games with the San Diego Gulls (AHL) this season.
During the 2019-20 campaign between the Gulls and Oilers, Gates combined for 14 goals and 11 assists for 25 points in 45 contests. Gates ranked second among all Tulsa rookies in goals (10) while finishing second in both assists (10) and points (20) in 25 games before the season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The second-year pro has appeared in 28 career AHL games with the Gulls, totaling eight points (5+3) while also adding 41 points (18+23) over 60 contests with Tulsa.
Prior to turning pro, the Grand Rapids, Mich., native completed a four-year collegiate career at the University of Minnesota (Big-10), where he registered 85 points (42+43) in 148 games with the Gophers from 2015-2019. As team captain during his senior season, Gates finished third on the team with 18 assists and 31 points, both career-highs. In addition to being a three-time member of the All Big-10 Academic team, he helped Minnesota win two-straight Big-Ten regular-season champions in 2016 and 2017.
Gates was originally drafted in third-round (80th overall) by the Anaheim Ducks in the 2015 NHL Draft.
Warren, 23, comes to Rochester after starting the 2020-21 campaign with the Jacksonville Icemen (ECHL), recording 21 points (8+13) in 39 games. The 6-foot-1, 191-pound forward ranks fourth among all Icemen skaters with 13 assists and 21 points while being fifth on the club in goals (8).
As a rookie with Jacksonville last season, Warren represented the Icemen at the 2020 ECHL All-Star Classic. He finished tied for team-lead in goals (14) among all first-year skaters and second in points (28) and fourth in assists (14) in 47 games.
Prior to turning pro, the Carleton, Mich., native completed a four-year collegiate career at the University of Michigan (NCAA), where he registered 45 points (18+27) in 149 games with the Wolverines from 2015-2019. As a Freshman, Warren helped the maize and blue claim the Big-10 Conference Championship while skating in all 38 games and registering 17 points (5+12).
Warren was originally drafted in third-round (81st overall) by the Arizona Coyotes in the 2015 NHL Draft.
Lekkas, 25, returns for his second stint with the Amerks after making 25 saves in his AHL debut against Syracuse on March 26. He began the 2020-21 season with the Fort Wayne Komets (ECHL), posting a 7-2-2 record with a 2.15 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage in 11 games. The 6-foot, 200-pound netminder currently leads all ECHL rookie goaltenders in goals-against average while ranking third in wins and fourth in save percentage.
Prior to turning pro, the Elburn, Illinois, native completed a four-year collegiate career at the University of Vermont (H-East), where he finished with a 45-69-20 career record and made 3,913 saves, the most in Hockey East history and fifth-most in NCAA history. As a junior, he appeared in all 34 games while posting a 2.27 goals-against average and a .930 save percentage en route to earning Hockey East Second All-Star Team honors.
He left Vermont after 134 games with the Catamounts, the second-most in program history by a goaltender, ranking first in save percentage (.918), third in goals-against average (2.61) and fourth in wins (45) and shutouts (7).
Prior to joining Vermont, Lekkas played three seasons with the Sioux Falls Stampede of the United States Hockey League, backstopping the team its second Clark Cup championship in 2015 after leading league with nine postseason wins.
