Keely Brown is a former Canadian national level athlete who played ringette, roller in-line hockey, and ice hockey as a goaltender. She played for the Canadian Senior National Ringette Team and was also a goalie on the Canadian Women's National Inline Hockey team. Brown also played semi-professional ringette in Canada's National Ringette League and in semi-pro women's ice hockey. Brown currently works for the National Hockey League's, Edmonton Oilers as a Senior Legal Counsel, and works for the Oilers Entertainment Group (OEG).
In ringette as an athlete, Brown has won the World Ringette Championships gold medal once, and the silver medal three times. She has won five more silver medals in coaching and consulting positions for the national Canadian ringette teams in both junior and senior levels. As of 2023, Brown is one of the assistant coaches for the Canada national ringette team and will help coach Team Canada Junior (U21). The 2023 Junior Canada team is competing in the upcoming 2023 World Ringette Championships.
Brown was inducted into the Ringette Canada Hall of Fame in 2014. As a ringette player, Brown won the gold at the World Ringette Championships in 2002 playing goalie for Team Canada and the silver medal three times. As a Team Canada coach she won one senior silver medal in 2013. She also helped create the National Ringette League and played for the Edmonton WAM!. In women's ice hockey, Brown played varsity level in Canada, played in Canada's Western Women's Hockey League, and in the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL, 1999–2007). In the late 1990s, Brown had also helped merge women's hockey leagues from Ontario and Quebec to form Canada's now defunct NWHL.
Apart from her athletic achievements, Brown also contributed significantly to the development of ringette equipment. Brown is recognized for her role in helping to develop the Keely glove, which was designed to provide better protection and grip for ringette goalies.
Early life
Keely Brown was born and raised in Canada and displayed a keen interest in sports at an early age, taking up ringette, a sport that was gaining popularity in the country. She eventually honed her skills as an ice hockey goaltender and then broadened her experience by participating in in-line hockey.
Education
Brown completed a four-year undergraduate degree in psychology and criminology with a women's studies minor at the University of Toronto, after which she went on to Osgoode Hall Law School and was admitted to the Ontario Bar in 2003.
Ringette
Early career
Before moving to Alberta, Keely grew up playing ringette in the province of Ontario in Kitchener, Waterloo, and Sudbury. Keely competed in 19 Canadian Ringette Championships, winning nine gold and eight silver medals.
Team Canada ringette
Goalie
Brown spent years competing as a national ringette goalie for the Canadian senior national ringette team from 2000 - 2010. She competed in five World Ringette Championships, winning one gold and four silver medals.
Coach
Brown is currently an assistant coach for 2023 Team Canada Junior for the 2023 World Ringette Championships in Calgary, Canada.
At the international senior level, Keely worked as the World Ringette Championships senior goalie coach for 2013 Team Canada Senior at the 2013 World Ringette Championships and an assistant coach for 2019 Team Canada Senior at the 2019 World Ringette Championships winning silver both times. She also worked as the Canadian national ringette team's goalie consultant for 2016 Team Canada Senior and 2017 Team Canada Senior who won silver both times.
At the international junior level, she was the goalie coach for Team Canada U19 West at the 2012 World Junior Ringette Championships who won bronze medal. She was one of the assistant coaches at the 2022 World Ringette Championships for 2022 Team Canada Junior where the team won the silver medal.
National Ringette League
After moving to Alberta, she joined the Edmonton WAM! of the National Ringette League for ten years, a league which she helped create.