Dane Dobbie may have won the 2019 NLL MVP award — deservedly so. However, Dobbie was one of the first to recognize the part that Christian Del Bianco played in the Calgary Roughnecks championship run.
Christian Del Bianco Out Here Ballin’ And Shot BLOCKIN’
(Footage courtesy of the National Lacrosse League.)
“I love the guy, man. He’s our backbone. I was constantly saying if I had a chance this (trophy) would be going to him and his name would be right here,” said Dobbie in an article featured on the National Lacrosse League‘s website by Joel Griffith.
Dobbie finished the championship series with a total of 13 points between the two games (7 goals, 6 assists) and definitely deserved the MVP title. But, another great choice would have been Christian Del Bianco.
The Roughnecks goalie — now in his fifth year, and who many consider being one of the top netminders in the league — registered 181 saves during the four-game NLL playoffs while allowing only 35 goals, good for an impressive .838 save percentage during crunch time.
Then, you have to consider that a lot of Del Bianco’s saves came at critical times during the playoffs, particularly when he had a great string of saves to open the overtime period during the second game of the championship round.
Christian Del Bianco is off to a great start this year as the “Swami of the Big Save” — patent pending on that nickname, by the way! — began the 2020 NLL season with an incredible .900 save percentage performance that allowed only 7 goals while making 63 saves.
Del Bianco was gracious enough to appear on the Lacrosse Classified podcast this past week with hosts Jake Elliott and Evan Schemenauer. Every episode is a can’t-miss show, but we think this episode is definitely worth the listen.
If you’d like to play along with Stampede Tack‘s #WhoYaGott contest, in order to win prizes from the “Winners In Western Wear” — I’m on a roll! — then visit the Lacrosse Classified Twitter page or search for their handle @LaxClass in order to stay up-to-date on the current links for entering that week’s contest. Then, tune in to the Lacrosse Classified show every week!
We’re expecting great things from Del Bianco this season and in the future. Can’t wait for the 2020 NLL season to roll on!
