Brennan Vogt
Shane Bowers, a first-round draft pick with Ottawa who became part of the Avalanche organization through the Matt Duchene trade in 2017, has had a rough go of it in his professional career since. It’s been a career riddled with injuries and other tough breaks, like a false-positive Covid test in 2021 that kept him out when he should have been playing.
But he’s still battling, trying to avoid the stigma of being the only player from the first round of the 2017 NHL draft who has yet to play a single NHL game.
But his time may be nigh. He was signed to a one-year contract over the summer and he’s still with the team, deep into training camp. But there are some cuts still to be made. It’s going to be a dogfight between Bowers and others, such as Martin Kaut, Anton Blidh
“He could have a chance to get his crack at his first NHL game this year,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said Sunday.
“I’ve liked Bowers in camp this year. He did really well on the skate test and it shows on his speed on the ice,” Bednar said.
Bednar also gave some feedback about his game saying that “his growth will come from getting more engaged in some of the battles. He has stood out in most of the practices and he will get another opportunity here.”
Bowers is a very good skater. He is good on his edges and has good acceleration with top speed to match. Bowers is more of a north-south skater, perhaps at times lacking lateral movement and some creativity. His balance can set him apart, especially as he has put more strength into his legs with weight training. This added strength has helped him with fighting for loose pucks along the boards and in the open ice to body a man off the puck.
Offensively, Bowers is strong down low, with his favorite place being right in front of the goalie in the crease. He loves to cycle the puck in the corners to throw off defenders and get his body between the puck. He has great vision to find open teammates in small spaces and in the passing lanes to create scoring opportunities. Bowers plays a very similar role to Gabriel Landeskog, he will carry the puck in, pass it off, drive the net and wait for the rebound. Bowers just does it in a smaller frame than Landeskog does.
An Example of Bowers skill with the Colorado Eagles:
Defensively, Shane Bowers plays a very responsible game. He battles for positions and loose pucks and helps his defensemen low in the play when necessary. Bowers is great at taking away the passing lanes to interrupt the opposition. He can even play on the penalty kill if needed. Bowers will backcheck when he needs and not just coast into the defensive zone.
Overall, Shane Bowers has a lot of potential to be a third-line or a second-line center in the NHL. But the clock is ticking. He’s 23 now, and behind in the career curves of most people in his draft class. But he’s still here, with a new contract in hand and fighting for it.
The key that he will need is that he will have to have one or two injury-free seasons. This will get his feet really moving in the pros. Injuries have been his issue the last couple of years, the Avalanche see potential in him, so should the fans. We expect him to come out of training camp with a chip on shoulder and with something to prove with a shot for the team.