Crystal Lake South’s Bower makes big impact
He’s one of the smallest skaters on the team, but Joey Bower has had, perhaps, the biggest impact on the success this season of Crystal Lake South.
Start with, for instance, the Gators’ 5-3 win over Metro Central rival Barrington —the first time South has defeated the Broncos. Bower, the team captain and top center, tallied a powerplay goal in the second period of that game, while right wing Jordan Ross had a goal and an assist, and left wing Jake Bigos had 2 goals and an assist.
“Beating Barrington probably was the highlight game of my career, so far,” said Bower, who stands 5-foot-9 and weighs 155 pounds. “That win showed that we can do anything if we come together. That win has given us a lot of confidence.”
The Gators are 22-10-2 overall, 13-4 in Metro Central, only 1 point behind Barrington. And the Gators lead the league in scoring (80 goals in 17 games).
“It’s been a good season so far,” Bower said. “We have a lot of chemistry; I think that shows in our record. It feels good to win with these guys.”
Bower, 18, a Crystal Lake resident, is in his third season on varsity, and having one of the best offensive seasons in the state. He has 24 goals, 28 assists, highlighted by a 4-point game (3 goals, 1 assist) against Fremd.
“Since last year, Joey has improved as a player and a leader,” said South coach Rich Perillo. “As a leader, he reads the other players very well and tries to motivate them to get them going. He is an example on and off the ice. Joey arranges team meetings, fun activities away from hockey and really cares about the team.
“As a player, he has improved on his speed, vision and two-way play. Joey has great outside speed. He realizes the opposing players focus on that, so he has learned when to pass effectively.
“Joey has matured and is a big asset to our team.”
Bower’s transformation into a game-breaker was born this past summer. In fact, much of the Gators’ success can be attributed to the Bower-led dryland training the team participated in during June and July.
“I worked out hard this past offseason. I knew I had to step up and take the lead, particularly since we lost so much (off last year’s team),” Bower said. “Our dryland training was suspended (last summer) because coach (Perillo) was busy with work. So, I just called all who were potentially trying out for the team and coordinated dryland training. Mostly, we just ran together.”
Bower also worked with weights by himself at a local health club.
“Everyone knew we had to work hard; everyone listened. The training was very beneficial physically and we really came together as a group,” Bower said. “Personally, I feel bigger, faster, stronger.”
And it shows on the ice, where Bower has already surpassed his stats (15 goals, 30 assists) from last season — and the season is only about halfway over.
“I’m just going into every game, playing my hardest, using my speed, my stick-handling skills to do whatever I can,” he said, “and quite often, the puck ends up in the back of the net, whether I shot it or passed it to someone to shoot.
“When I have the puck on my stick, I feel I can see more of the ice. Last year, I think I was a little intimidated by the level of play. But now I’m very confident in my skills.”
Bower, who shoots right-handed with No. 97 on his jersey and his new, flashy white Reebok 7K skates, will likely play for the Dells Ducks next season in the Minnesota Junior Hockey League. Clearly, “my size is not a drawback for me,” he said.
So how far can these Gators go?
“As far as we want, based on how well we work together,” Bower said. “Potentially, I think we can go pretty far in state.
“Sure, we’ve been overlooked in the past, but I think we’ve caught a lot of eyes around the state this season. We’re not as overlooked as last year.”
Notes: The annual, 16-team Blackhawk Charities Holiday Hockey Tournament begins Monday at The Edge Ice Arena in Bensenville. St. Viator, York, Naperville Central and others will battle for bragging rights. The championship game will be played Thursday, Dec. 29.
The battle for supremacy in the Illinois Suburban Hockey League (ISHL) is, for the most part, a two-team race between Glenbard (9-0-2, 20 points) and Lyons Township (9-0-1, 19). The co-op Cobras and the high-powered offense of Andrew could challenge, too. Senior forward Pat Boroian leads Andrew’s scoring with 13 goals, 14 assists in 11 games played. His 27 points are most in the league. Junior forward Brandon Vonfeldt has 11 goals, 9 assists for Andrew, and leads the IHSL with 4 game-winning goals. Junior forward Nick Riscossa has 5 powerplay tallies, tops in the league, among his 12 goals. Junior forward Brandon Kressner is the top playmaker in the IHSL with 18 assists (and 7 goals) in 11 games played.
It’s been a rough season at Warren, where the varsity is 2-11-1 in Metro North, with 32 goals scored in 14 league games, while the JV is 0-13 with only 16 goals in 13 games.Senior forward Mike Salaman leads the varsity with 6 goals, 6 assists in 14 games, including 3 power-play tallies.
Lake Forest and New Trier, the two top teams in Metro girls, each have scored 100 goals in 16 games.