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UConn men’s hockey bolstered its 2020 recruiting class on Tuesday when they landed forward Cassidy Bowes. Bowes becomes the fifth player in the Huskies’ class of 2020 and, barring a late addition this summer, will be the final player to join the squad as a freshman next season.
Bowes currently plays for the Whitecourt Wolverines of the Alberta Junior Hockey League, where he has racked up 22 goals and 21 assists in 42 games. Listed at 6-feet, 190 pounds, he is described as a gritty, physical, middle line player who has a nose for the back of the net. At the collegiate level, he projects as a left wing or center.
The Kelowna, British Columbia native comes in as a ‘99 player, meaning he will be 21 at the start of his freshman season. Because of that, he should bring experience and leadership to the Huskies the moment he steps on campus.
Bowes had previously committed to Michigan before changing his mind, making him the third member of UConn’s 2020 class to flip to the Huskies. Nick Capone (Maine) and Johnny Mulera (Providence) preceded him in this regard and will join him in camp next season.
This signing confirms British Columbia’s place as a recent hotbed for UConn recruiting. Current Huskies Carter Berger, Jonny Evans, and Carter Turnbull are all from the Canadian province while 2021 commit Brandon Santa Juana and Sean Donaldson (year undecided) hail from there as well.
Earlier reports indicated that the Huskies wanted to bring in a goaltender for 2020, but a handful of factors — including the midseason addition of Matt Pasquale — seem to have changed those plans. As of now, the Huskies will add the following five new players to their roster for next season: forwards Bowes, Capone, Mulera and Hudson Schandor along with defenseman John Spetz.
Here’s a complete list of UConn’s commitments:
2021 - Forwards Tabor Heaslip and Brandon Santa Juana
2022 - Forward Oliver Flynn
Unclassified: Forwards Ignat Belov, Mark D’Agostino, Sean Donaldson, and Arseni Smekhnov and defenseman Malik Alishlalov