By: Ryan Baker, Journalist

A simple conversation following the 2024 UFA Season has come full circle. While in Salt Lake City amidst their title run, Ben Feldman, head coach of the Minnesota Wind Chill, saw the performance that Lukas Ambrose was putting on with the Seattle Cascades. About two months later, those two had a conversation about Minnesota’s program. Ambrose’s interest piqued, but nothing came of it.

Well, it wasn’t until now that that conversation paid off. Ambrose and former college teammate Noah Coolman will be sporting that Wind Chill name across their chests for the 2026 season. Immediately, for those who don’t understand the magnitude of these two signings, let me put it into NFL terms.

It’s like if Myles Garrett and Micah Parsons signed with the Super Bowl-bound Seattle Seahawks. Two of the top playmaking and highlight-producing defensive players in the league go to a team with a high pedigree, a successful history, and an already stout defense. They join a squad that is not liked by some but respected by all.

“These are two very special players who bring a whole lot of energy and will contribute in major ways for us on the field,” said Feldman. “You’re talking first team All-UFA talent, top block getters, and Defensive Player of the Year resumes.”

More specifically, Ambrose brings over his Defensive Player of the Year and All-UFA selections in 2024, and Coolman is coming off of his 2025 First Team All-Defense selection. We have also seen these two names at the top of the leaderboards for blocks over the last three seasons. In 2023 and 2024, Ambrose led the league in blocks, including a 34-block season, where second place only had 22. Conversely, Coolman was tied for most blocks in the league in 2025. That’s 118 blocks between these two over the last three seasons.

“I'm looking forward to playing some good games and working hard,” said Coolman. “I'm excited to play some big teams, have fun playing frisbee, and hopefully do some crazy stuff for the fans while I'm out there.”

“It's exciting to be a part of a team that is going to try to make another run at winning a championship,” said Ambrose.

How did this happen?

After signing Justin Burnett and James Pollard last year, a lot of people were wondering if Feldman had anything up his sleeve for the 2026 season. The answer is yes, and Feldman had been plotting this since the end of the 2024 season.

“When players like that catch your eye, have a special talent and do the things that Lukas [Ambrose] can do, you are always open to having conversations and putting out feelers,” said Feldman.

Following that conversation in late 2024 with Ambrose, there was a chance that he was going to join Minnesota for 2025, but work and other factors ultimately made it not the right fit. Messages continued to be exchanged with Ambrose after his recent relocation to Los Angeles. With the Aviators disbanded, his work situation ironed out, and Coolman joined in on the idea, things started to make a lot of sense.

“As an organization, I feel that we continue to do a really good job of putting our players in the spotlight and showcasing them as individuals to give them the recognition they deserve,” said Feldman.

Feldman asked Ambrose about the status of his former college roommate and teammate at the University of Oregon to see where Coolman’s level of interest would be to play with one of his closest friends on a championship-caliber team.

“I’m more of a defensive minded coach, so I tend to gravitate towards players who have proven they can be impactful for their team in that way, and Noah is definitely one of those guys,” said Feldman.

Noah woke up to a text from Ambrose, informing him about the interest from the Wind Chill, and had a discussion with Feldman shortly after.

“This is like a dream situation,” Coolman remarked. “I feel like I should probably give it a thought, at least. Then, it seemed like it could all work out. So, why not give it a try? You don't get these opportunities too often. I was, initially, already intrigued by the offer itself, and then to hear all this positive stuff from Ben was super helpful.”

Both players have gotten a small taste of Minnesota, with Ambrose participating in the exhibition at halftime of the Minnesota Vikings vs. the Washington Commanders when the Wind Chill and the D.C. Breeze faced off. Meanwhile, Coolman played against Minnesota when he was a part of Colorado in 2023 and 2024.

“I remember playing there,” Coolman recalled. “It was like torrential downpours, but there were so many people there. They were close up on the sideline, yelling the whole time. I was just like, this is just crazy.”

Logistics

Having travel players in this league can be a tough endeavor for all parties involved. The organization needs to find a way to get the players to the games and try to get them involved with practicing as much as possible, and the players want to be involved as much as possible.

‘The Wind Chill have built a more positive image around bringing a player in,” Coolman said. “It sounded a bit easier to fit in, because they already had this structure for working in players from the outside.”

“When I play, I want to be as involved as possible,” Ambrose exclaimed. “I'm trying to become a part of the community.”

From a skylight perspective, that is the only thing that could be problematic with these signings. Neither player will be able to participate in every practice and could potentially miss games here and there. Feldman, Coolman, and Ambrose have several scheduled practice weekends, but we could see some issues with chemistry early on.

“I feel like that's something I'm definitely thinking about. I wouldn't necessarily say that I'm worried about it,” said Coolman.

“We’re really excited to have these two guys involved,” Feldman said. “It’s a lot of time and sacrifice for them to make this happen. Our group is just ecstatic with the energy, playmaking ability, and competitive edge that these guys bring to the field. It’s going to be pretty special for our team and our fans to get to witness these guys playing on the field.”

The Fit

After having a conversation with all parties involved, it seems like this integration is going to be seamless. While roles have not been clearly defined, look to see Coolman and Ambrose joining one of the best D-lines in all of the sport.

Not only that, but as mentioned before, these two guys were college roommates. They have the friendship and the chemistry already established. Even in separate conversations, the two are already thinking the same.

When Ambrose was asked about what he is most excited for about being a part of the Wind Chill, his answers were playing with a team that has the history and players that Minnesota does, playing at Sea Foam Stadium, and being able to play with Coolman.

On the other side, Coolman’s responses to that same question were playing for an organization like Minnesota, and that shock factor that it’ll bring to the league, being involved with the program and community, and playing with Lukas. Those sound like pretty similar answers to me.

Off the top, a potential D-line for Minnesota could look like this: Noah Hanson, Justin Burnett, Cameron Lacy, Paul Krenik, Brandon Matis (returning from injury), Coolman, and Ambrose. That lineup contains five First Team All-Defense selections and one Second Team All-Defense selection in the last two years alone. The exception is Krenik, who has split his time between offense and defense the last couple of years.

“I just feel very honored to be on that line,” said Coolman. “I'm excited to have that firepower.”

“This D-line should be pretty disgusting,” said Ambrose. “When you have a D-line that's just a bunch of dogs, that excites me. It just feels like a bunch of playmakers and people who are disgusting at defense. That’s one of the best feelings, walking out on a D-line and knowing that the offense is scared to go up against this line that's coming out.”

The excitement and anticipation don’t stop there. Krenik and Will Brandt are two of the young cornerstones on this team and are stoked to have these guys join the team.

“I’m pumped to be able to play with two new talented players,” said Brandt. “Our defense is going to be scary. Playing against that competition in practice will definitely strengthen our offense. Excited to start getting some reps together!”

“Those are two of the best defenders in the league, and I think they have a lot to bring to our team on both sides of the ball,” Krenik remarked. “I was a bit surprised by the news, but I know Ben’s always cooking up something, so I knew there were going to be some big pickups; I just didn’t know how big they would end up being. I think it’ll be hard for opposing teams to put up a lot of points on us.”

The Effect

These two signings could propel Minnesota as the favorite to bring home the title in 2026. Personally, I think that’s exactly what this does. Minnesota is bringing in two defensive weapons that can play offense with the best, want to have fun doing it, and have that win-first mentality.

“If the coach told me to sit for a point and he's putting somebody else out there, I'm just going to do my best from the sideline to support the boys who are out there,” said Coolman. “I just hope people are excited to watch the frisbee that's going to come out of Minnesota this year.”

“I think it’s fun to win games, but it's more fun to play good teams and have good games,” Ambrose stated. “Making the sport enjoyable to watch is something that I think I will wake up to this year.”

A residual effect that may go unnoticed about the signings is the influence these two are going to have on an offense that has struggled and been inconsistent the last few years. We’ve seen Minnesota’s defense keep them in games, and that will hold even truer now, but having these two come in and practice against this offense will pay dividends, or to put it simply, iron sharpens iron.

Even with their tough schedule in 2026, Minnesota will be on the right side of a lot of those box scores. The coaches are excited. The players are excited. Ambrose and Coolman are no strangers to making jaw-dropping plays, so the fans are going to be excited. However, the league should be scared and is going to have to game plan for the Wind Chill a bit more than they might have originally thought.