Cross Lake's Brady Keeper, a former Norman Northstar and the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) MVP this past season with the OCN Blizzard, is one of 30 players, including 10 drafted in the 2016 and 2017 NHL drafts and nine other unsigned, undrafted camp invites, participating in the L.A. Kings development camp June 27-30.
Keeper, who committed to play for the NCAA Division 1 University of Maine in 2017-18 prior to the start of the 2016-17 MJHL campaign, won the Steve “Boomer” Hawrysh MVP Award and the Brian Kozak Trophy as the league’s top defenceman as well as being named a first-team all-star after a season that saw him score 23 goals and 25 assists in 48 games.
This was Keeper’s third season with the Blizzard. He recorded 16 goals and 28 assists for 44 points in the 2015-16 season and 13 goals and 28 assists in 2014-15 when he was named to the all-rookie team. He was also a first team all-star and runner-up as top defenceman in 2015-16. He had seven goals and 14 assists in 22 playoff games with the Blizzard over three seasons.
Keeper played one season with the midget AAA Northstars in Thompson, recording seven goals and 18 assists in 42 games in 2013-14, when he was recognized by the team for earning the most defensive player of the game citations over the course of the season. He was also a member of the Keystone Junior Hockey League’s Norway House North Stars in 2012-13, scoring six goals and 28 assists.
