For plenty of pro hockey players, the road to the NHL runs through small towns in Alberta. That is true in the case of Letestu, who grew up in Elk Point, a town of 1,700 about 2 1/2 hours northeast of Edmonton that was also the hometown of big-shooting former NHL defenseman Sheldon Souray.

The 5-foot-10, 197-pound Letestu never played Midget AAA hockey, nor did he crack the lineup of a major junior club. Bonnyville of the Alberta Junior Hockey League, a club based about 30 miles from Elk Point, was his launching pad to pro hockey.

In his three seasons with Bonnyville, Letestu's teammates included future NHL forward Justin Fontaine, who was born in Bonnyville, and goaltender Shannon Szabados, who has won Olympic gold medals with Canada's women's team. In 2005-06, Letestu led the AJHL with 105 points (50 goals) and was the league's most valuable player.

Still, no NHL team drafted Letestu out of junior hockey, so he moved on to college hockey for one season. He had a strong season with Western Michigan University (46 points in 37 games, including 24 goals) and signed a pro contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

A skilled face-off man and dependable center who can kill penalties and whose big shot makes him valuable from the point on the power play, Letestu played two-plus seasons with the Penguins. Pittsburgh traded him to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Nov. 8, 2011 for a fourth-round draft pick.

After nearly four full seasons with the Blue Jackets, Letestu signed a three-year free agent contract with the Edmonton Oilers on July 1, 2015. He played four seasons with the Blue Jackets, then spent most of the next three seasons with the Edmonton Oilers before the Blue Jackets brought him back in a trade with Edmonton on Feb. 25, 2019. He finished the season with Columbus, then signed as a free agent with the Winnipeg Jets on July 2, 2019.

Bonnyville honored Letestu by retiring his No. 11 on Jan. 30, 2016.

NOTES & TRANSACTIONS

• Signed as a free agent by Pittsburgh, March 22, 2007.
• Traded to Columbus by Pittsburgh for Columbus' 4th round pick (Matia Marcantuoni) in 2012 NHL Draft, November 8, 2011.
• Signed as a free agent by Almtuna (Sweden-2), December 3, 2012.
• Signed as a free agent by Edmonton, July 1, 2015.
• Traded to Nashville by Edmonton for Pontus Aberg, February 25, 2018.
• Traded to Columbus by Nashville for Columbus' 4th round pick in 2018 NHL Draft, February 25, 2018.
• Signed as a free agent by Winnipeg, July 2, 2019.