The Wind Chill faced a devastating outcome last season and are looking to avoid repeating it this year. But how do they do that? What can Ben Feldman and the rest of the coaching staff do to ensure that the Wind Chill make it to Championship Weekend? I believe the solutions are fairly obvious. The Wind Chill need to adapt to a more offensive league, ensure their veterans are where they need to be, trust their new talent, and empower their players to make the big plays.
The Offensive League
I have made it very well known that I believe in a strong offense to win games. It has often been said that the best defense is a good offense and for good reason. Having a sharp offense puts the onus on the opposing team to score after you. In my last article, I show that the numbers back this up as well.
Teams with the best offense almost always win games, and the best offense in the league last year, the New York Empire, went undefeated. Minnesota has a remarkable defense. And this is undoubtedly a key to their success, but in a league that is won on offense, it is important that Minnesota has a good offense too.
Looking forward to the 2023 season, we can see that Minnesota is actually set up to make a large offensive stand. With players like Abe Coffin and Josh Klane as handlers, Minnesota is set up to be looking deep on just about every drive, and with that threat constantly looming it allows Minnesota to open up more opportunities in the midfield as well. This means that fitting in good cutters on offense who can constantly be looking to cover open field is a key for Minnesota to make it to Championship Weekend this season.
The Veterans
A lot of Minnesota’s talent comes from veterans, including players like Abe Coffin, Brandon Matis, Bryan “B-Von” Vohnoutka, and many others. These players have such an affinity for the game and have been playing for such a long time that they can seemingly be slotted anywhere on the team and make a large impact.
Abe Coffin, being the All Star MVP, has the capacity to make huge impacts both offensively and defensively. And with his prowess for long range throws, it might make sense to say he should be the player to throw every pull. But his ability to be a long range threat on offense combined with the fact that he is normally an offensive player means that Abe should most likely be on offense.
B-Von, being the Wind Chill’s all time goal leader, also makes him an ideal player for offense. But last season he was split between offense and defense, spending about 40% of his time on defense. Having the veterans on the Wind Chill play not only where they feel they are best, but also where they are most likely to make a large impact, will pave Minnesota’s path to the final four in August.
The New Guys
The younger generation of players on the Wind Chill are some of the most promising players in the league. With players like Paul Krenik representing the United States at U24, a hyper-competitive tournament with the best players from around the globe under the age of 24, there is a wave of talent incoming. This really shows just how good of a player he is at a young age.
He mentioned on the Let’s Chill podcast how he had been brought into the sport by another rising star, Will Brandt, who also tried out for U24. Both of these players will also be under 24 in 2 years when the next U24 league happens. Their combined talent alone is enough to turn heads and solidify Minnesota’s future strategies and talent.
The next generation of players, including Gordon Larson, Noah Hanson and Marco Dregni have a real opportunity in 2023 to make their case on the AUDL field. While they haven’t had a lot of experience with the Chill, each of these players come from impressive ultimate backgrounds and can help propel the team forward this year. Feldman and the team will certainly look to these players for help in some big situations.
Plus, with plenty of existing Minnesota talent being signed to other teams this year, a lot of younger players will need to be filling bigger roles. So the coaches will need to trust these young players to step up and fill these big roles to allow veteran players to stay in positions they are comfortable in.
The BIG plays
Frequently in highlight reels we see players diving to block a pass, or throwing a desperation attempt to get one more score before the end of the quarter. These plays seem like they’re one in a million.
But why should they be?
Every play, every throw, is an opportunity. In a game of ultimate, there may be very few opportunities to get ahead of your opponent (see: every Wind Chill vs. Union game in 2022). Taking advantage of these plays and opportunities is what separates the good teams from the great teams. Manufacturing these opportunities is what separates the great teams from the Championship-caliber teams.
There is no doubt that Minnesota had one of the best defenses last year, but it could have been even better. Minnesota needs to enable players to go for bigger plays. The defense could be laying out on more routine passes, not letting any yardage be for free. Minnesota could look for huck opportunities more often.
And once teams realize the need to be covering the Wind Chill cutters deep all the time, it will open up the mid to short range passes more. Yes this will lead to needing to rotate lines more, but allowing these newer players to step up, and letting veterans feel comfortable will certainly help. Sometimes the best play isn’t the big play, but sometimes it is.
And once Minnesota is willing to make the big plays all the time, it will make other teams play differently. Realigning the team’s strategy to force breaks and make opponents uncomfortable can give the Chill the edge they need this year.
The Season To Do It
While 2022 didn’t go the Wind Chill’s way, there is a lot to take away from the wins and, more importantly, the losses. Applying these lessons to the 2023 campaign will push Minnesota to be better than ever before.
And, hopefully, that means putting them on the biggest stage in the game. And in front of their home crowd, no less.
I have faith that the Chill are realigning and preparing for the 2023 season with one of their best lineups in team history. And with the other Central Division mix-ups, this very well could be their year. What we do know, however, is that something will need to change for that to happen.