Meet Your Neighbours – Where Heritage Meets Hockey: Aleko Sdrakas

by Jamila Douhaibi | photo by Kathryn Alvarez Photography – 

How many people can say that they still love something as passionately as they did when they were four years old? For Aleko Sdrakas, the answer is easy. At that age his parents put him in hockey, and he has played ever since – as a kid with the Peninsula Eagles, for the Peninsula Panthers and Kerry Park, and most recently as a right-wing with the Greek National team.

Aleko remembers playing in the Little Canucks team with his brother, who is one year older than him, and says that he just fell in love with the sport. His progress has been notable – playing minor-league hockey and travelling around the Island, to playing with the South Island Royals, and finally internationally this past August in Miami.

But to Aleko, hockey is just as much about the players as it is about the sport. He says that his closest friends growing up were the group of guys he played with – “the rink was our happy place.” When he played with the Panthers, teammate Grant Gilbertson passed away, and Aleko says he felt honoured that their team won the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League (VIJHL) that year in Grant’s memory.

His coaches have also made a big difference throughout the years, including connecting him with the Greek National team earlier this summer. Aleko says “I would like to thank Brad Tippet, Brian Passmore, Brandon Cox, Henry Acres, Brad Cook and Wayne Ross.”

Ten years ago, the Greek team was shut down because they no longer had a regulation sized skating rink. The team is starting up again for the first time since 2013 and Aleko says that it’s “pretty cool to be in the rise of it all.” The team’s goal is to build the required rink in Greece and play with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). This means that everyone on the team, including players from across North America and even Sweden, will have to get Greek passports. Aleko’s grandparents are from Greece but his father was born in Canada, so in order for Aleko to play on the team, his father will first need to get his citizenship. Aleko says that his family is so proud that he will be representing their Greek heritage in the sport that he loves best.

“I never thought I’d be able to represent our country on an international scale,” Aleko says. He sees a marked difference between playing for a country versus a club. When he joined the team, he says that it felt like “we knew each other before we met,” and that the team is like a family. Aleko sees the same passion in the other players that he has always felt in himself while growing up.

The last time Aleko was in Greece was when he was nine years old. He had planned to go in 2020 after he graduated high school, but the pandemic cancelled that. He says that he’s lived in Canada his whole life and can’t wait to learn more about his heritage in the country itself. His family owns and runs Maria’s Souvlaki in Sidney, so he is always surrounded by his culture, but he’s looking forward to being able to spend time with his family in Greece.

Aleko sees the benefit that having a rink will give to the community – more opportunities for the country to host events, not only as a hockey rink but for other sports like figure skating, as well as having a space for those who have never skated before.

While the team gains support and sponsorship, and Aleko goes through the process of becoming a citizen, he has started studying at Camosun and playing with the UVic hockey team. His hopes are that after he plays with the Greek National team, he might eventually play pro in Europe. But for now, he dreams of playing in the new rink and in the World Championships for his country. Aleko says that “mixing Greek heritage with hockey is the ultimate combination.”

Peninsula Minor Hockey card and action photo courtesy Aleko Sdrakas.