Former Saints' Duo Returns to South Carolina

Jeff Caister (l) and Derek Keller

The South Carolina Stingrays and Head Coach Cail MacLean announced today that the team has agreed to terms with former St. Lawrence standouts Derek Keller and Jeff Caister. In keeping with club policy, details of the agreements were not disclosed.

Keller, 23, skated in four regular-season games and four playoff contests last season with the Stingrays scoring five points (2g, 3a). Prior to joining the Stingrays, the Wilkie, SK native completed his senior season at St. Lawrence where he netted ten goals and nine assists for 19 points in 42 games. During his four seasons with the Saints, the 5-foot-10, 175-pound defenseman appeared in 133 games earning 13 goals and 24 assists for 37 points. Before jumping into the college ranks, Keller competed for the Battlefords North Stars of the SJHL where he was a member of two ITECH championship teams and received the Outstanding Defenseman Award twice. He also played baseball where he was a member of two league and provincial championship teams.

"In last season's playoffs, Derek came on strong offensively and played a responsible defensive game," said MacLean. "His puck skills will make him an asset to our power play and he plays with a great competitive edge. He will be an impact player this year."

Caister, 25, dressed for four regular season games and all five playoff contests a season ago for the Stingrays recording two assists. Before signing with the Stingrays, the 6-foot-2, 185-pound defenseman appeared in 42 games with St. Lawrence tallying 18 points (6g, 12a). In two seasons with the Saints, Caister suited up for 79 games contributing eight goals and 19 assists for 27 points. He began his college career at Wayne State University playing in 73 contests and netting 47 points (5g, 42a) before transferring to St. Lawrence. Prior to joining the NCAA, Caister was a member of the GTHL Major championship team in 2002-03.

"Jeff's strengths lie in his skating ability and his solid understanding of the defensive position," MacLean said. "Despite being fresh out of school, he was able to step into the ECHL and excel in even strength and penalty kill situations due to smart positional play. I expect him to develop into a very good shut-down defenseman this year."