QA with Nic Dowd

Center Nic Dowd is Exhibit A for three cases. One - you can come from a location not known for producing high-end players, such as Huntsville, Alabama, and still make something of yourself in hockey. Two - never ignore the long-shot or even extreme long-shot prospects if you scout for a scouting service, because one of the 30 NHL teams may just like them and you don't want to be caught with nothing on them (or as this McKeen's correspondent calls it, justification for personal tendencies). Third, and most important, never give up. Dowd was cut by the Des Moines Buccaneers prior to their fabulous (sarcasm) 2008-09, went to the St. Louis Bandits of the North American Hockey League and had a tough time cracking their lineup (did not play a game for them), and was traded to the Wenatchee Wild, where he proceeded to put up over a point per game, provide a physical edge, and help the team nearly earn a Robertson Cup in their inaugural season. Oh yeah, and earn selection by the Los Angeles Kings in the seventh round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft with the 198th overall pick, the lone player selected in the 2009 Draft out of the NAHL, and in his second year of draft eligibility to boot.

In short, cut by one of the worst teams in the USHL to start 2008-09 to NHL draft pick in June. Anyone need a copy of the poem "Don't Quit"?

Dowd is in the USHL this year, skating for the Indiana Ice, where he was amongst the team's leading scorers heading into the Christmas break despite missing a few games in late October and early November while playing for Team USA at the World Junior A Challenge.

McKeen's Hockey correspondent Kevin Wey had the opportunity to talk with Nic Dowd earlier in December. Dowd discussed playing for Team USA at the WJACs, his adjustment to the USHL, bouncing around in 2008-09 before finding a home in Wenatchee, his selection by LA, his commitment to St. Cloud, and his emergence from northern Alabama via Culver Academy.

McKeen's: We'll start with happier times. About a month ago you were playing for Team USA at the World Junior A Challenge. It turned out pretty well, especially as a team. But, going back to the beginning of that experience, tell me how it was you found out you'd been named to the team, who told, and your reaction.

Dowd: My head coach, Jeff Blashill, who was the assistant coach, as you know, he pulled me aside about a week before they released the roster and he was just, "I just want to let you know that we picked you for the team and we think that you'd be a good attribute. You can do stuff for us." So, at that moment, I had no idea that was even coming. But, I remember coming into the league, that was one of my main things, I was like, "I want to make that team." One of my buddies, David Gerths, had made it last year, so I wanted to make that team. Obviously, I can't say much about it, but I was really excited at the time.

McKeen's: Do I assume they (points to a group patiently waiting for Dowd) are related to Gerths?

Dowd: Yeah, that's David's mom and dad.

McKeen's: I thought maybe so, given the Notre Dame sweatshirt, and then with the Culver connection…

Dowd: Yeah, yeah. Right.

McKeen's: … I kind of figured.

Dowd: Right, right.

McKeen's: Going back to the World Junior A Challenge, how did the play there compare to what you play every night in the USHL?

Dowd: I thought it was just as fast. I heard a couple people say it was better than some USHL games. But, at the same time, I thought that, transitioning back and fourth (pauses), I think one of the biggest things was that there was not as much hitting in the international play than there is in the USHL. I think that makes a big difference in the game. The USHL, the game's up and down, up and down. In the international play, it slows down, it's fluid, it flows, because there's not as much hitting, so guys are able to stickhandle, guys are able to make plays.

McKeen's: It helps Matt Leitner out a little bit. (Chuckles)

Dowd: It does. Leitner? Yeah. Leitner's a good player.

McKeen's: In this league, too…

Dowd: Yeah, but he looks great up there.

McKeen's: … but give him the time up there.

Dowd: Yeah, exactly.

McKeen's: Tell me about your role with Team USA up there and who your linemates were?

Dowd: I think my role was more as a (pauses), I was one of the four 1990's that was picked for that, five 1990's maybe that was picked for that. I think my role was more as a leader and then a guy that could possibly fill in any role that was presented up there. I think, since we had a lot of young guys, especially first-year guys in the USHL, we get down some games, the momentum just goes up and down with these games, so I think it's good to have older guys there. David Gerths was our captain, and also my linemate, Shane Berschbach. Playing with those guys, it was just unbelievable. Dave's one of my best friends, who I played with at prep school, and "Berschy," I play with here. So, it was just a connection that's still long-lived.

McKeen's: What were your favorite parts of the Junior A Challenge and what will you remember most about it?

Dowd: My favorite part was probably just meeting a bunch of the guys around the league. Not a lot of people get to experience that, and I get to share that with about 20 guys that I knew nothing about before I got up there and made some friends. I still contact a lot of them, still stay in touch with them. Probably the best part was seeing coach Carlson dance in the locker room after the gold medal game.

McKeen's: Coach Carlson is usually a fairly reserved guy, especially with media types, I'll tell you that much.

Dowd: Yeah, yeah. Him and coach Blashill are very similar.

McKeen's: Who were some of your Team USA teammates that impressed you the most and why?

Dowd: I'd probably say David Gerths, by far. He's a leader, he's a great guy, he's a good friend, and day in and day out, his bad games are considered one goal and a couple assists. He impressed me, I think, the most. I knew that going in, and Berschbach, too. "Berschy," he just lit the lamp. He had like six goals or something, and John Parker, too. I think he doesn't get as big of look as a lot of kids do because he's playing special teams so much, but he kills penalties so well and is such a good player for our team. He does all the small things that I think go unnoticed.

McKeen's: He's a (pauses), an excellent skater.

Dowd: Unbelievable skater, yeah. Fluid.

McKeen's: I don't know if you guys ever think about playing him back at defense, but he could be an Eamonn McDermott back there.

Dowd: Yeah, McDermott's a great player, too. Very similar to Parker, as he skates.

McKeen's: This is your first and only season in the USHL. What are your overall impressions of the league and how does it compare to the North American Hockey League.?

Dowd: I think this league, there's a lot more hitting than the North American League. They're both good leagues, but there definitely is a difference. I think the biggest difference in the North American League is you may give up a puck in the slot, and in the North American League, it's 50/50, maybe goes in. Here, they make you pay. It happened to me a couple times tonight. I mean, it's a goal. You look around, any league on up, you make dumb plays, and you've got such good players on the ice that they capitalize on them.

McKeen's: The odds do go up that that mistake gets buried as you go up the ladder.

Dowd: Yeah.

McKeen's: What have been the biggest adjustments for you on the ice and some of the areas of your game that you've been focusing on improving this year?

Dowd: Definitely, I'd say d-zone. Coach Blashill is all over me. I think he's trying to make me (pauses), I mean, I know he is, he's trying to make me the best player. In his exact words is, "When you move on to college, I don't want to fail you as a coach." He's an unbelievable guy, a great coach. I think the areas I really need to improve on are d-zone, smart plays, realizing I don't have options and getting the puck high off the glass, and definitely stops and starts. I think, o-zone, I can continually gradually get better at. I think that's the part of the game that you play more often if you have better defense.

McKeen's: On the flipside, what would you say are the strengths of your game and your style?

Dowd: I'd probably say my style is that I like to hit and I like to grind it out in the corners. I like to take shots. But, I think one of my strengths is just keeping it low and working with my linemates.

McKeen's: Going back to last year, I was actually here at Buc tryouts, and if memory serves me right, you were here.

Dowd: Yeah.

McKeen's: I actually took some positive notes on you, but things ended up what they were. Last year, did you have any other prospects with USHL teams, and tell me about the situation that brought you to Wenatchee.

Dowd: I don't know. I think in Des Moines, it just didn't work out. That's nothing against them or me. They're a good organization, a good team. Luckily enough, I was drafted by St. Louis in the North American League, so I was sent down there. Things didn't work out there, either, whether it was players, and there was a new coach that hadn't drafted me that was there, and they were on a nine-game win streak as I got there. How you going to crack (pauses), it's tough to crack the lineup. The coach realized that I possibly wasn't as happy as I could be, so he did a really good thing for me and looked for a good place, and luckily I ended up out in Wenatchee, and everything fell into place, and I landed on my feet. It was one of the best years I've ever had.

McKeen's: It definitely turned out very well. You guys were first in the West, second place in the Robertson Cup, but Wenatchee was an expansion team. What helped you guys do so well so soon? And then tell me about the travel, too.

Dowd: Yeah, the travel wasn't too bad, because we flew everywhere. But, going to Alaska, I look back on it and I dreaded it so much, but now I miss it, because it was such a good bonding experience for the guys. I think what fell together was when I got up there, we were adding pieces to the puzzle, and [Paul] Baxter is an unbelievable coach, similar to Blashill. I think everybody meshed together. We got pumped by Topeka in the three games very early in the season. We got killed. They just outscored us 19-4. After that, we had two weeks off because of our weird schedule, and we just went to work. After that, we swept Wichita Falls. I think Baxter just did a good job of drilling the systems into us and learning how to play as a team. As an expansion team, it's hard to get on your feet, but I think we just had a lot of good people behind us.

McKeen's: It definitely helps (pauses), I'll put it this way, not every North American Hockey League team has a coach who has coached in the NHL.

Dowd: Yeah, it's hard to find.

McKeen's: Last June, you were in your second year of draft eligibility, and you put up decent numbers in the NAHL, but did you have any expectations heading into it (the draft) that something like that could still happen to you?

Dowd: I talked to a couple guys from LA, and it was like, the biggest thing I got was a wink from one of them. You know, "We might draft you," and kind of wink, wink. I talked to them only twice, and then after that I was eager to watch the draft day. I actually watched the first round and forgot about the rest of the draft. I was coming back from Wal-Mart and someone gave me a text message, and it said, "You just got drafted into the NHL." So, it was one of those things where it's surreal. I still look back on it and it doesn't seem like it's really happening. Fortunately enough, I was able to get drafted and go on to their camp and see everything that it takes to become a pro. It was phenomenal.

McKeen's: You do a good job of anticipating things. Next question, about the development camp, tell me more about that, some of the things they went over with you and the tips you took away from it.

Dowd: We worked on a bunch of stuff. I mean, I think once you get to the next level, it's all about puck protection. The team that controls the puck the majority of the game is usually the team that wins the game. You've got such good goaltenders, they're not going to give up many goals. You look at guys like Anze Kopitar and Wayne Simmonds and guys like that, and they just protect the puck so well, it's hard to take it off of them. I'd probably say I definitely have to get bigger. I took that away from that, too. Those guys are pretty big guys, compared to me anyway. Overall, quick shot, shot release, everything like that. It was just so much stuff to take in within eight days. But, they do a good job over there.

McKeen's: What was some of the off-ice stuff they worked on with you guys?

Dowd: We did stickhandling. I think a big thing, too, as I said, protecting the puck, is keeping the puck wide, away from the defender. We worked on stickhandling a lot. Then, we lifted twice a day, but it was more along the line of smart lifts rather than heavy lifts.

McKeen's: Maxing out really doesn't do a whole lot.

Dowd: Right, right. It was all hockey-specific.

McKeen's: Functional training.

Dowd: Right.

McKeen's: You're heading to St. Cloud. When did colleges start talking to you and what were the decisive factors that made you choose to become a Husky?

Dowd: I think it was the fact that I was talking to Air Force Academy, a really great school and with really great coaches. I visited there and things just didn't work out. I just don't think that was the best place for me. I guess that just happens sometimes. But, St. Cloud came to me shortly after and I talked to the coaches, and the head coach actually flew out to Wenatchee, Bob Motzko, which is a big thing. He took time away from his family, his home, to come out and see me all the way out in Wenatchee and watch two games, and met with me after the game. Right away, I was like, "I want to play in the WCHA." So, I sat there and was like, "Wow. This is where I want to go." I went on my visit, everything seemed so great, and I fit in really well with the team. The town's small, and I wanted a smaller school. It was just, everything felt right. They went to bat for me and they wanted me. You can't go to a better place except where you're wanted.

McKeen's: That's right. It's always a good feeling.

Dowd: Yeah.

McKeen's: You're from Huntsville, Alabama, which (pauses), UAH (University of Alabama-Huntsville) was one of the top DII programs for years…

Dowd: Right, right.

McKeen's: and still have a Division I program now, and they've had a minor league team in various leagues and with various names for a long time, but other than you and, kind of, Jared Ross, in a way, are about the only guys out of there. So, how was it that you started playing hockey and at what point did you start thinking about leaving home?

Dowd: I started playing hockey when I was five or six with my brothers, Josh and Matt. They played youth hockey and then all the way up through midgets, and that was about it. I think they just kept me into it. I think they're vicariously living through me. You know, because my brothers tell me all the time, "I wish I could do what you do." Because they're working desk jobs, and they're always pushing me to get better, always pushing me to learn. When I hit about, after about freshman year in high school, I played for a Triple-A team and I realized that, nothing against Huntsville, but it's kind of like a double-edged sword. You've kind of got to get out of there in order to make it. So, I ended up going to Culver Prep and spent three great years there under Al Clark and that organization.

McKeen's: With Culver, what made you decide that going to Culver was the right option for you instead of continuing with the Triple-A route somewhere else?

Dowd: I just figured that I really didn't want to move up to Michigan or somewhere and play Triple-A (pauses), I think my main thing was education, you know? I mean, why move away from home if you're just going to get a regular education, I felt like. I can go to Culver and have a great time and the people they produce out of that school, you can't question it. Plus, the hockey's always great. It's always been great there. So, it just seemed like it was a good place to go.

McKeen's: What were the different organizations that you skated for in the youth ranks at the different ages?

Dowd: Actually just one, just HAHA hockey. It was Huntsville Amateur Hockey Association, just all the way up until freshman year, and then I played for Total Package Hockey, which is now I think, like, the Thunder, or something.

McKeen's: The TPH Thunder.

Dowd: Yeah, yeah. So, I skated for them for one year.

McKeen's: Now I know who they (TPH Thunder) are. Lastly, who were some of your favorite players growing up and why and then some players today that you'd like to equate to?

Dowd: I can't really remember thinking about players growing up. Of course, Wayne Gretzky and people like that, but I'd probably have to say, now, Jarome Iginla is my top. I mean, the guy's phenomenal. He does everything. He fights, he hits, he scores, he's leading the league in goals right now, he's a captain, and he's been in the league for I don't even know how long, and the guy just does everything, and he's a coachable player.

McKeen's: I think it's about 13 years now.

Dowd: Yeah.

McKeen's: I guess one more question, what was your favorite team growing up, since you don't have a hometown team but there are a few that are somewhat close?

Dowd: Favorite NHL team (pauses), I don't even know. I'd probably say the Predators, growing up in Nashville. I went and watched a lot of those games when I was younger. It was an unbelievable place to play. I had fun doing that. I'd probably say that was my team growing up.

McKeen's: I guess they're the closest (to Huntsville).

Dowd: Yeah, they're only a couple hours north.