West Coast talent says he wants to stick close to home to focus on business and upcoming wedding
Christian Del Bianco says he won’t be returning to the Calgary Roughnecks next season.
The MVP goaltender — and backbone of the franchise — thanked the Rough House fans via social media Tuesday, adding he has told the National Lacrosse League team he won’t be re-signing with the club when he becomes a free agent Aug. 1.
Del Bianco wrote on his Instagram: “Dear Roughneck fans, thank you so much! I came as a teenager to play in Calgary and I was overwhelmed by the support you fans gave this team, my appreciation for you only grew from there. To run out onto the floor with the fireworks blasting, to hear you chanting has been incredible. I hope in some way I returned the excitement.”
He added: “No longer a teenager, but as someone who runs his own business, is about to be married I let the organization know shortly after the season that my life off the floor is my priority and when my contract ran out I would not be re-signing in Calgary.”
When reached by Postmedia later Tuesday, Del Bianco declined to comment further, only to re-iterate, “The Calgary Roughnecks have been great to me — just felt it was time for me to move on personally.”
The 26-year-old product of Coquitlam, B.C., says he wants to stick close to home this winter to focus on his Del Bianco Contracting home renovation business and his upcoming wedding.
Plus there’s the undeniable attraction of wanting to be with the Vancouver Warriors, his home-town team. Playing in Vancouver would mean travelling for just nine games of the 18-game regular season. Playing in another city means that he’d have to fly in and out every week for all 18. The players in the league don’t make enough money to not take a day-job.
And then there’s Del Bianco’s tight bond with former Roughnecks-turned-Warriors head coach Curt Malawsky.
Ever since Malawsky left the Riggers after last season to return to take on the open coaching vacancy — and GM role — on the West Coast, the writing seemed to be on the wall that Del Bianco would join him after his contract expires with the Roughnecks.
In Malawsky’s first season heading up the Warriors, they missed the playoffs, but their 8-10 finish was a jump from their 4-14 season of 2023, plus they won five of their final six games.
So a blockbuster trade could well be on the table between the clubs.
At the very least, if the Riggers don’t deal Del Bianco, it appears likely he’ll sit out.
In a related trade, the Roughnecks just dealt transition star and free-agent-to-be Zach Currier to re-acquire super-sniper Curtis Dickson in a swap with the San Diego Seals.
Riggers GM Mike Board could have slapped the team’s one and only franchise tag on Currier — the club leader in loose-ball recoveries and the 2022 and ’23 NLL Transition Player of the Year — to keep him in Calgary for at least one more season.
But that tag was being reserved for all-world goalie Del Bianco, who has been the team’s most important player — arguably — for the last six years.
The superstar goalie has been with the Roughnecks since 2016.
If he’s not the best player in the league, he’s certainly in that conversation, at the very least. He’s also well spoken, the kind of guy an NLL team could market around, especially in home-town Vancouver.
And he’s a winner, as Del Bianco — who sports franchise-highs in wins (53), goals-against average (10.68) and save percentage (.789) — was a vital member of the Riggers’ NLL championship victory in 2019 and was named league MVP in 2023.
“To win a championship was amazing and being able to raise thousands of dollars off the floor for local kids with Kidsport so they get a chance play this incredible game was the best,” posted Del Bianco. “Ascent Consulting and Mr.Alston I can’t thank you enough for your generosity over the years.”
Del Bianco finished his Instagram post with: “My memories will be of you the fans, all whom I have met and had such great interactions with, for every save I made I had twice as many smiles. Who knows what the future holds with my lacrosse career but the past as a Calgary Roughneck has been incredible.”