A hometown boy is coming back to Boise.
The Idaho Steelheads, along with Head Coach & Director of Hockey Operations Everett Sheen, announced that the club has re-signed forward C.J. Walker to an ECHL contract for the 2025-26 season.
The 26-year-old Walker enters his second professional season after notching 13 points (8-5-13) in 42 games with Idaho last year.
The Boise, ID native earned a contract with the Steelheads last season after attending training camp on a tryout. He began playing hockey when he was six years old and grew up playing for the Junior Steelheads organization.
Walker played his youth hockey through Bantams in Boise and was a member of the 2012 14U Tier II National Championship team.
After that, Walker moved away from Boise at the age of 14 to Wilcox, Sask. to play with the Notre Dame Hounds Program from 2013-16.
From 2017-20, Walker split time playing junior hockey in the United States Hockey League (USHL) with the Chicago Steel, Des Moines Buccaneers, and Omaha Lancers where he appeared in 52 games.
During that span, Walker recorded 11 points (4-7-11). He suited up for parts of two seasons in the North American Hockey League, first with the Wichita Wildcats from 2016-17.
In Wichita, he collected 33 points (10-23-33) in 56 games.
With the Lone Star Brahmas during the 2019-20 campaign, Walker registered 28 points (10-18-28) in 44 games.
The 6-foot, 175-pound forward played four seasons of NCAA hockey at the University of Wisconsin Superior from 2020-24. He appeared in 93 career games, accumulating 52 points (18-34-52).
Walker made his professional debut in the Spring of 2024 in the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) with the Birmingham Bulls, notching 10 points (4-6-10) in 13 games.