Dowell left Memorial High School to be a part of the USA Hockey U-18 Developmental Program in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the year 2001.

The defending Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks narrowly qualified for the playoffs as the eighth and final seed in the Western Conference and Dowell made his Stanley Cup playoff debut on April 13, 2011, in game 1 of the first round against the Presidents' Trophy-winning Vancouver Canucks where the Blackhawks lost with a score of 2–0.

[5] After the Blackhawks elimination from the playoffs, there were speculations that Dowell had been playing with a broken ankle suffered on February 1, 2011, in a 7–4 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets, although this was never officially confirmed.

[6][7] On July 1, 2011, the Dallas Stars announced that the club had agreed to terms with center Dowell on a one-year contract worth $800,000.

[9] On August 31, 2015, Dowell signed a professional tryout contract in returning to attend the Rockford IceHogs training camp for the 2015–16 season.

[11] After captaining the IceHogs in the 2016–17 season, and posting 15 points in 66 games, Dowell as a free agent opted to sign his first contact abroad in agreeing to a one-year deal with Austrian club, EHC Black Wings Linz of the EBEL, on May 12, 2017.