The Vancouver Warriors welcome home Christian Del Bianco as they take on the Toronto Rock at home

Jennifer Field/GATG

On Mar. 14, 2025, The Vancouver Warriors were back home after a game on the road for a Friday night, East VS West, tilt against the Toronto Rock. 

With the help of recently acquired Christian Del Bianco, the Warriors were able to secure a 13-8 win over the Rock, a crucial win amidst their push to make the playoffs.

Welcome Home Christian Del Bianco

Del Bianco, a local of Coquitlam, BC, made his Warriors debut against the Rock after being traded to the Warriors from the Calgary Roughnecks earlier in the week on Mar. 10, 2025.

Making himself known in his first game with the Warriors, Del Bianco saved 48/56 shots faced and posted a 0.86 save percentage, marking his first win with his new team. 

When asked if he felt rusty after not playing for so long, Del Bianco joked, “Yeah, you know what, letting in the first goal is pretty on brand sadly. I’ve done a lot of that in my career and at least it kinda took the pressure off.” Once Del Bianco settled in, his leadership became clear and he helped lead the Warriors to victory.

Del Bianco brings a great defensive presence to the net, and he also brings a great offensive presence to the net. When head coach and general manager Curt Malawsky was asked if players will now run with Del Bianco in net, he answered, “100%, yeah, it’s a green light to run.” In the game against the Rock, Del Bianco not only got his first win as a Warriors, but also marked his offensive presence with his first assist.

Malawsky gave further praise to Del Bianco when he was asked about what he liked about the first-half, simply answering “Christian.” Clearly, Del Bianco is already fitting in and the fans and Warriors team alike are happy to have him home. 

Dylan McIntosh’s Season Debut

Del Bianco’s Warriors season debut was not the only one that took place against the Rock. Dylan McIntosh also made his season debut for the Warriors and he made a strong impression, producing two goals and one assist.

When asked about what it means to represent the Warriors, McIntosh responded that “It means the world… always wanted to play in the hometown.” McIntosh took an important first step against the Rock to work towards continuing to represent the Warriors.

Malawsky discusses trying to find lessons for people, particularly the young guys working their way towards the league and says, “[McIntosh] bought his time, he didn’t complain…he banks and competes, he’s just dying to get on the floor and when he got out there he created a lot of space, got that big goal 6-on-5, and then scored a big one in the third quarter too.” McIntosh’s work ethic and determination is noticed, and it payed-off in two goals and assist in his Warriors season debut.

Addressing the Achilles Heel

A 15-minute halftime is a great time for teams to catch their breath, reset, and gain focus. On the other hand, it can work to slow momentum and cause issues for teams, like it has for the Warriors.

“Our achilles heel” is how Malawsky has referred to the Warriors third quarter. But “We fixed our third quarter. Near the end of the game it was what it was, but in that third quarter we won 5-2.” Here, Malawsky makes note of the Warriors scoreless fourth, but focuses on the positive of a vastly improved third quarter, an important part of playing a full 60 minutes.

Double the Hat-Trick’s, Double the Fun

The Warriors game against the Rock saw hat-trick’s from two different players, combining for seven goals, equalling more than half the Warriors 13 goals.

One hat-trick came from Keegan Bal, who scored four goals and had five assists for a total of nine points. And another from Adam Charalambides who scored three goals and had three assists for a total of six points.

When asked about what was clicking to achieve nine points on the night, Bal said, “I just think as an offense we’re moving the ball really well, kinda changing plains from high-to-low and low-to-high, and everyone was contributing, and that’s what you want.” It is important in the Warriors remaining five games to keep doing what Bal mentioned, as well as, keep the offense going as the game against the Rock saw points from 11 different players, including Del Bianco.

Looking Ahead

The Warriors will play their second game of a two game home-stand, before hitting the road. They won the first game and aim to win the second, trying to go two-for-two, and as Malawaksy put it “control [their] own destiny,” during the push to make the playoffs.

See you March 22, 2025 at Rogers Arena for the Warriors college night game against the Georgia Swarm.