Steelheads add Keeper

BOISE, Idaho – The Idaho Steelheads, ECHL affiliate of the Dallas Stars, announced that the club has signed defenseman Brady Keeper to a contract for the 2026-27 season.

The Steelheads acquired Keeper’s ECHL rights from the Rush in June in completion of a future considerations trade that sent defenseman Jaden Shields to Rapid City.

Keeper, 30, enters his second ECHL season after notching five points (2g-3a) in seven games with the Rapid City Rush last season.

Prior to his ECHL debut last year, he spent time in the American Hockey League and National Hockey League, picking up 31 points (10g-21a) in 129 AHL contests from 2019-24 with the Springfield Thunderbirds, Syracuse Crunch, Abbotsford Canucks and Laval Rocket.

His three NHL contests came with the Florida Panthers from 2018-21, with two regular season appearances and one in the postseason, coming in Game 2 of the Qualifying Round in 2020 against the New York Islanders.

Prior to professional hockey, Keeper played two seasons at the University of Maine, posting 44 points (13g-31a) in 73 games, leading the team in plus-minus rating (+17) in his first season while leading the club in shots (101) in his second year.