After previously playing with Baltimore Revo, both Mike Zuppa and Matt Darula have left the team. They are both going to be signing with Edmonton Impact, the apparent replacements for Goldman and Arod after they left the team last week for the Latin Saints.
More info on Revo coming soon. The news has been confirmed by franchise owner Diego Santos, and Alex Goldman is the newest member of the Latin Saints. For Goldman, his move to the Saints brings experience and leadership for the young roster. In six seasons with Edmonton Impact , Alex Goldman won a staggering 13 events, and made the finals 22 of the 38 events he played with Edmonton during that time and placed in the Top 5 in 33 out of 38 events. Put simply, Alex has one of the highest win rates in professional paintball history among current active players. In terms of the Saints, the addition of Goldman brings them one of the best snake players in the history of the game. We should see Head Coach Brandon Short deploy Goldman as the main offensive threat on the snake side of the field and for good reason. Goldman has elite speed and his patience within the snake has developed his style in a way that he can often be placed on an island by himself on the snake side. With the pickup of Ceelos Cortez recently as well, it isn’t out of the question to see the wildly aggressive Ceelos in the snake 1 attack role, with the more patient and calculated Goldman playing behind him. Much in the same way we saw Impact deploy Goldman and Kyle Spicka to great success. This would potentially give the Saints one of the most potent snakeside pairings in the NXL pro division.
One factor I particularly love about Goldmans playstyle is his timing. While many players tend to favor getting into the snake early, Alex is elite in his ability to create pressure from all levels on the snake side of the field, whether it be the snake corner, or the 50 snake and everything in between. He is essentially able to calculate the level of risk instantly and make the best decision to keep himself in the game. And, in a position that often sees much lower survivability, this advantage has made Goldman one of the best players in the World. In my opinion, this move paired with the signing of Alex Rodriguez and Ceelos will surge the Latin Saints timeline years forward and instantly make them a threat to make a deep Sunday run this season. They still appear to be lacking a veteran presence on the back line of the field, which could prove to be their entry barrier into the elite of the pro division. But I'm sure Diego will address this prior to event one in Florida. The string of signings continue as it is now confirmed the Latin Saints are signing Corey Hall for the 2022 season.
Corey will instantly become the top dorito attacker on this team and will bring a huge amount of offense to the Saints. Corey is a big move player, and his timing is elite. He previously played with the Los Angeles Ironmen, where he most recently had won the 2020 NXL Vegas Open. The Saints are rapidly becoming one of the most talented rosters in the league with this signing, in addition to recent signings of star players Alex Goldman and Alex Rodriguez, as well as offensive threat and former teammate of Corey, Ceelos Cortez. During a time of uncertainty around the Los Angeles Ironmen organization, Team Captain Nick Slowiak has reiterated to Iconic Paintball, his commitment to being apart of a winning program in Los Angeles in the upcoming season. Nick will be a critical piece in the upcoming rebuild process for Los Angeles, and his talent and charisma will play a large part in attracting more players to the Ironmen this season. Talking with Nick.Los Angeles has recently seen the departure of some of their top athletes such as Payton Tabada, John Jackson, LJ Parrish, and Ceelos Cortez; but through this chaos the pillar of their pro organization still stands firm. Nick Slowiak, one of the top defensive players in the National Xball League commented on his commitment to the LA roster; "I have committed to play for the Ironmen in 2022. I am here because I believe in the organization and the backing of Dye. This team was robbed of what could have been, arguably, it's best year ever in 2020. Some people got greedy, some people had to step away due to life. It's all understandable and I don't hold any grudges. I'm just not so quick to quit when I look ahead to what can be. It's hard, it's not easy, and there will be times when you're going to want to quit, but winners are not people who fail, but those who don't quit." In regards to the 2022 roster, there has also been some confusion on the direction the team will take. As a large portion of top talent is quickly being signed, Nick believes they will still be able to build a strong roster and be competitive in the upcoming season and also commented on what it means to be a leader on the Ironmen;
"I would question my leadership. I for one can do better, I have to do better. This will be one of the hardest things the organization has ever had to deal with. An almost incomprehensible exodus of players from the team. With that though brings opportunity, it brings a chance for someone to earn their Shield and prove themselves. I don't believe the organization has to do much in terms of strategy. What worked for us at the start of 2020 was everyone on the team wanted to be there. That's where we will start. You have to want to be part of a team, be a team player. After that it will be teaching and enforcing the Ironmen mentality. I have been blown away by the interest of others to come and try to be apart of this team and it gives me hope. There are quite a few very talented players out there. I look forward to seeing them next weekend." With so much uncertainty around the Ironmen, one thing is clear, they are led by a resolute, talented, and dedicated player in Nick Slowiak. With Nick helping to build the next great Ironmen roster, we should see them once again rise to the top with hard work. Keep an eye out for Nick's newest custom barrel tips coming soon, as well as an exclusive run of retro Dye jerseys and colorways. Logan Arnold of Columbus LVL has made the decision to retire from the NXL Professional Paintball League. Logan was a key contributor on LVL that helped the team make their late season push in 2021 to emerge as a competitive program. Per a player from the team.
And the biggest move of the professional paintball offseason is official; Alex Rodriguez, the superstar professional paintball player from California, has signed with the Latin Saints.
Brandon Unger has announced on his social media that he is stepping away from professional paintball to place a focus on building his career outside of the game. He most recently played with San Diego Aftermath, which may explain their multiple offseason moves already in an attempt to fill his role with another player.
Brandon mentioned that he will continue to play in the ICPL with Adrenaline in the 10 man classic format. A rumor has emerged that superstar offensive player, Alex Rodriguez, is stepping away from Edmonton Impact and signing with a new team. This is a developing story and we will provide more info on the new team as it emerges.
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