How Owen Hiltz has breathed new life into Chaos offense

When the Carolina Chaos drafted Owen Hiltz, the staff knew head coach Roy Colsey was getting the perfect player for his offense. And the 5-foot-8 weapon showcased how dangerous he is with the ball in his crosse during his seven-point (5G, 2A) outburst against the Utah Archers’ defense last week in Fairfield.

At Syracuse, Hiltz didn’t leave the lefty wing often and predominantly scored on that side of the field. However, early in his professional career, he’s beginning to find ways to score not only from “Hiltzy Island,” but also from the opposite side of the field off the dodge.

Colsey described Hiltz as “sneaky fast and quick” after his performance against Utah, and the rookie used that attribute on the speed dodge to clear up enough room for him to get this shot off.

A large factor leading to Hiltz’s success is Colsey’s offense fitting his style of play. Hiltz loves working the pick game to earn himself switches onto short-stick defensive midfielders, and even when he doesn’t get switches, he still knows how to find soft spots for shots. And Colsey wants Hiltz playing freely.

“He’s definitely given me a little bit of free range because he knew my background and how I play already, and that’s how he likes to play,” Hiltz said. “It’s been a lot of fun, and he’s definitely a guy that when you want to know something specific, he’ll let you know.”

However, the biggest change for Hiltz in Colsey’s offensive scheme has been adjusting to playing midfield, where he now plays for roughly half of each game. In Hiltz’s eyes, he’s still getting used to understanding the nuances of the position.

Depending on the quarter, either Hiltz or fellow rookie Jackson Eicher starts as a midfielder while the other plays attack.

If the Chaos are attacking the goal where the righty side is nearest the substitution box, Hiltz is on attack, and Eicher is running out of the box. If they are attacking the goal where the lefty side is nearest to the box, Eicher is at attack, and Hiltz runs out of the box.

“Usually when I get a shorty at attack, I feel like it’s a good matchup, so I try to go to the cage, but coming out of the box, you get one right away, and there’s not much time left on the clock,” Hiltz explained. “I have to get used to not rushing [offense out of the box] and allow the ball to get back to me. I feel like sometimes early in the clock, I go for the home run play when our defense just played a full shot clock.”

The prospect of having an SSDM matchup is also a fresh experience for Hiltz.

“I’m honestly not too sure [when I last matched up against a short stick],” Hiltz said. “I’ve played attack my whole life, so it’s new.”

The first-round draft pick had to learn the speed of the Premier Lacrosse League in Carolina’s 20-6 loss to Maryland, and since then, the change in the Chaos offense has been noticeable.

“The coaches were like, ‘It’s a lot faster,’ so I thought I had to play a little bit faster,” Hiltz said about adjusting to the 32-second shot clock. “The second week I was in the lineup, I got used to how to play the clock. You can kind of drain it to the last five, and if nothing happens, you just dump it in the corner and get your defensive guys on. I’m used to playing a little bit quicker, so it  was a little difficult, but then after playing it for a week, it was a little bit easier to read the situations.”

Before the former Syracuse star joined the lineup, the Chaos averaged 10 points a game. With Hiltz in the lineup, the Chaos are averaging 10.75 points a game.

In 2025, the Chaos are scoring on 23.2% of their possessions, a step up from the squad’s 21.3% rate in 2024. That mark still is not great, but it doesn’t need to be. The offense has to be one score better than the opponent, which has the hard task of playing against the greatest goalie of all time, Blaze Riorden.

Hiltz’s impact in this offense has reshaped the trajectory of the season for Carolina. Over his four games, he’s scored or assisted on 17 of his team’s 41 goals (41.46%).

Opposing defenses match up a pole with Hiltz when he’s at attack, but his effectiveness in the pick game has turned him into a nightmare cover.

He has a low center of gravity that makes it hard to push off his line if there’s a bigger defender on him. His release is wicked, and he only needs a tiny window to get a shot off.

Hiltz has made that spot inside the arc on the lefty wing a wheelhouse for step-down bombs. When Hiltz crow hops from the wing off the catch in transition, the pick game or on the power play, a corner is likely getting destroyed.

His most lethal physical attribute is his snappy wrists.

“Owen, he’s a tough matchup,” Colsey said after Carolina’s 12-10 win over California in Chicago. “He’s a phenomenal shooter, he’s crafty, he’s slick, he’s quick when he needs to be, and he’s been an incredible addition for us. We knew right out of the gate he was going to be a great player; the way he plays the game, he makes it look easy. He’s making some incredible plays for us as a first-year player.”

As Hiltz continues to acclimate to the PLL, Carolina will become more dangerous on the offensive end of the field. And if the young offensive group can execute better early in games, they’ll become even more dangerous with the world’s best goalie and a solid defense behind them.

Hiltz will continue to learn how to manipulate the pick game to create switches onto SSDMs, which should open up even more offense for himself or his teammates when he draws doubles.

And as he adjusts to this new style of offense and new matchups from the defense, the Chaos will continue their dark horse push for the playoffs while Hiltz pushes forward in the Rookie of the Year race.