It was December 19, 2015 and the Lincoln Stars were on the road against the Des Moines Buccaneers, trailing, 3-1, halfway through the third.
Henry Bowlby and Sam Kauppila raced toward the goal, Kauppila fired a shot and Bowlby crashed the net to knock the rebound past Buccaneers goalie Nick MacNab. The play was inconsequential in a nasty string of losses, but it was a sign that the Stars’ 6’1” 190 pound center was growing in his role. Bowlby was starting to arrive.
“We wanted to see (Bowlby) get more involved physically and as the year went on it became more apparent that he wanted to do that,” Stars coach Chris Hartsburg said. “He’s got to take on the mentality of a power forward.”
Hartsburg’s plans for Bowlby were made especially clear during a meeting after the center missed four games with a shoulder injury in late November. The meeting was one of many where Hartsburg challenged Bowlby to manage his consistency and be a larger presence on the ice.
“For a guy like Henry who’s skating ability is well above average, he’s got to learn how to be a guy that can use his body,” Hartsburg said. “Being able to skate and being able to play physical is something that can bring an element to his game.”
Bowlby finished his first USHL season with five goals and 10 assists through 56 games. He recorded one assist in the Stars’ first-round playoff exit to the Waterloo Black Hawks.
“There were points last season where I was in a rut and wasn’t playing the way I wanted to,” Bowlby said. “As the year went on I started to learn that I was pretty strong and started using that to my advantage.”
Weight helped as well. Bowlby added ten pounds after leaving Edina High School where he posted 23 points in 50 games. This offseason, Bowlby has placed his emphasis on improving his explosiveness and general athleticism with his private coach, Barry Karn, who trains elite area talent such as Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman and former USHLer, Matt Carle.
The training will help prepare Bowlby for training camp in August where he’ll be among a limited group of returning forwards. Hartsburg believes Bowlby’s natural work habits will help him avoid a sophomore slump and, if all goes according to plan, help him to become the player the team wants him to be.
“In order for him to take a big step which we think he can, he needs to learn to be consistent in certain areas of the game,” Hartsburg said. “If he’s willing to become a physically dominant player, that’s going to allow him to be a really important player in our group.”