The third owner to be presented is Chandler Holguin from Cleveland. He and his Bucs were the second team to enter the league in the summer of 2020. Chandler’s background is from hockey and it was through a hockey tournament in Arizona that he got his first taste of floorball. Since then, he has competed in many tournaments like Golden Gate Cup and US Nationals where he represented Colorado as a goalkeeper. His focus is now turning to managing the Cleveland Bucs but it is not Chandler’s first time managing a sports team.
– I wanted to be a part of the league because of my previous experience with managing and running hockey teams (D.C. Filibusters in Major League Roller Hockey and Pikes Peak Vigilantes in the Mountain West Hockey League).
He is now excited to join the first professional floorball league in North America.
– My expectations have fluctuated from my initial contact with Ryan until now when the league has received a lot of interest, not just within North American floorball but also overseas. The expectation of North American sports has pushed us owners to go “bigger” to try and meet those expectations.
In Cleveland, the preparations to build the first ever Bucs team are on the way. An additional challenge for the team is that they are operating in a new market for floorball.
– We are currently evaluating and signing our players and coaches, as well as securing items needed to play such as boards and goals. We are in a special circumstance being the only team established without an existing floorball community in the area, so we are starting completely from scratch.
Since floorball is new to Cleveland and Ohio, Chandler is looking for new places to recruit their players to put a strong and competitive team on the field.
– We’re hoping to come out and surprise a lot of people, by building a strong team from the net out and recruiting from what some would consider “unusual” places. Our team hopes to put a competitive and hungry team on the floor every day and night of NAFL competition. The city of Cleveland is no stranger to being dismissed by the rest of the world and we welcome the opportunity to be the underdog that surprises everybody except ourselves.
– As far as the in-house atmosphere for our home games, we hope to have a fun and energetic environment for our crowds that will keep fans coming back for years to come and even try out the sport of floorball for themselves.
– We are the team of opportunity, coming from an environment with no established floorball community. We welcome all who are interested to play for us and not just reserving roster spots for those that are part of the local scene. If you’re a hungry player looking to prove yourself in the floorball world, we feel our organization is a great fit for you.
Author: Joel Olofsson
