Del Bianco the brains behind Roughnecks’ run
Young goalie will need to be good again in NLL West Division final against Rush
No matter who is talking about Christian Del Bianco, they will all — without fail — say the same thing.
The kid has got the right stuff between the ears.
“One of the big things that separates a goalie from a great goalie is the ability to not get into their own head,” said Calgary Roughnecks head coach Curt Malawsky.
“Whatever sport it is. He has that ability. He never second-guesses himself. He has that confidence. If one goes in, his memory is really short and it’s ‘what’s next.’ He focuses on the next one. Even when the deflection went in off Zack Greer (last weekend), he laughed it off and moved on. He made sure (the Colorado Mammoth) didn’t go up by two in that game.”
Suffice to say, the play of the 20-year-old from Coquitlam is a big reason the Roughnecks are headed to the National Lacrosse League West Division final against the Saskatchewan Rush Sunday in Saskatoon. (5 p.m.).
In the biggest game of his twoyear career, Del Bianco shut the Mammoth down late in the game and helped his team to a 15-12 victory in the divisional semifinal in Denver last Saturday. The youngster faced 50 shots from a staunch Mammoth offence.
“It was a pretty unbelievable game,” Del Bianco said after notching his first NLL playoff win.
“A lot of ups and downs, but we stuck to it, and obviously, it paid off. You can’t really think too much about the score, otherwise the pressure will kill you.”
The stakes — and the opponent — are even bigger this weekend. But that pressure doesn’t appear to affect him.
“I don’t think he plays his age,” Malawsky said. “You’ve probably looked around the league, and there aren’t many 20, 21-year-old kids playing in the NLL. But once you meet Christian and understand his demeanour and his compete level, the biggest thing that trumps everything is his mental fortitude. Years don’t mean anything. He just plays his game. He exudes confidence at the back end, which flows through our team. Christian’s got nothing to lose. He’s a young kid having fun.”
The year and a bit he spent watching his teammate, mentor and good friend Frank Scigliano tend the Roughnecks net were obviously fruitful from a learning standpoint. He took over the starting job on Feb. 3 in Toronto and went on to amass the best numbers in the league, a 10.50 goals-against and .793 save percentage.
“He’s playing with an extremely high level of confidence, that’s what I’ve seen from Christian,” said veteran defender Mike Carnegie with that word again.
“For a young man, he has a lot of poise in net, and that’s rare to find at that age. Typically, most goalies, it takes them five or six years to actually figure out the game, how the NLL is played. The net is bigger, and you’re not afforded a bigger stick. Some of the changes he’s been able to adapt to at a young age, it’s pretty remarkable.”
No stranger to championships, Del Bianco backstopped the Coquitlam Adanacs to the 2016 Minto Cup, awarded annually to the champion junior men’s box lacrosse team of Canada.
Rush forward Jeff Shattler played a single season alongside him as a Roughnecks player and is not surprised by the youngster’s prowess.
“Not at all,” said Shattler, 33. “Since I’ve known him, he’s got a lot of confidence, and he should. He’s proven a lot already at a young age. And I think he’s going to be a stud in this league.
“He’s a great goalie, and he deserves to be in net. And he’s doing really well. He’s carrying that team on the back end for sure, he’s making some huge saves, and he’s throwing the ball up real fast so we have to stay away from his stick. He can turn the ball around, and guys can be on a breakaway before we know it."
As for Sunday’s outing, Del Bianco, a young man of few words, had this to say.
“Obviously we’re a tight-knit group, and no one wants the season to end,” Del Bianco said. “It gives us an opportunity and another chance to beat Sask. It’s an exciting time of the year, and we just want to keep it rolling.”