Watts Grinding to Earn Place with Thunderbirds
Published on January 15, 2026 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Halifax Thunderbirds News Release
Christian Watts was a late bloomer when it came to the sport of lacrosse. Growing up, the East Aurora, New York native focused his time in sports primarily on hockey, but after some time, the sport became too expensive for him to continue playing.
"My parents kind of just told us to pick another sport. I was probably 11 years old, and I just decided with my brother that lacrosse looked like fun. It was still an expensive game, but we could practice wherever and whenever we wanted to, so we just kind of set our eyes on lacrosse and never looked back."
Watts' rise to pro lacrosse has landed him in The Nest with the Halifax Thunderbirds, but his journey in the box game started back in 2019. He played a summer of Junior B lacrosse with the Niagara Thunderhawks. After that, he spent the next few years focusing on the field game at Siena University.
But in 2022, Watts made the decision to give box a go again, this time in the UCBLL with the Rapids. He was coached by Buffalo Bandits forwards Josh Byrne and Dhane Smith, who touted his high lacrosse IQ, size, and athleticism playing the indoor game. Smith added that a team should consider calling Watts' name at the 2022 NLL Draft, and as luck would have it, Watts would land with his coaches, being selected by the Bandits in the fifth round.
While Watts returned to Siena for his graduate season, he was able to crack Buffalo's practice roster for the 2023-24 season.
"(The jump to the NLL) didn't feel like a massive one, because I had been preparing and practicing so much for it. But it was definitely an eye-opener," Watts said. "I just noticed how strong guys were and how much harder it was to pick people. It was definitely a struggle to start. But once I got my confidence and ability under me, my mentors were giving me confidence and the backing to just play my game. That helped make it a smooth transition."
While he made his NLL debut against Rochester that season, his second NLL game would come on the road as the Bandits travelled to The Nest for a meeting with Halifax.
Watts recalled how loud the crowd was, and his shock when the cannons went off after a Thunderbirds goal inside Scotiabank Centre. He also said that, while Rochester had a good defensive unit, the aggressiveness of Halifax's defence, paired with the strong goaltending, made the experience an important one for the young righty.
As he entered his second year in the league, Watts found himself in the numbers game and was released by the Bandits. With a chance to choose where he wanted to land to continue his career, Watts got a call from Thunderbirds Assistant General Manager Scott Campbell.
"I think Soupy reached out a few hours after I got released. I obviously knew that Halifax was a strong team, and I was just up for a challenge and to try new things in the league, and things have worked out."
Watts made his debut for the Thunderbirds last season in a game against Toronto, where he registered his first point with Halifax. Going from playing in The Nest as a visitor to playing as a member of the home side gave Watts a boost.
He also had a familiar face in the Thunderbirds locker room in defender Austin Blumbergs, whom Watts had played with on the Rapids and against in college.
Blumbergs, who grew up just two hours East of Watts in Penn Yan, New York, was also a Buffalo draft pick who landed in Halifax for his first year with the organization last year. Being back together helped both get more acclimated to the locker room.
"It was really nice to have someone I knew in the room to just be able to come in and take the nerves off. It was definitely reassuring knowing that he was already there and that he was already acclimated to the group. It definitely helped me with the little things that were new to me when I joined Halifax."
After finishing out the 2024-25 season with the Thunderbirds, Watts had a strong pre-season this year, earning a spot on the practice roster once again. While he continues to improve his game on the field, he's taken to social media to help show how he prepares away from the rink.
Watts has gained a strong following for his shooting routines and drills, where he's helped give tips to the next generation of players while bettering himself in the process.
"Social media has just been very fulfilling. I never really took it as seriously as I do now, and honestly, I'm getting really good feedback," Watts said. "Just having people reach out to me to ask questions about how to play, it's been awesome to be able to help the younger generation and give back in any way I can. It's also kind of served as an accountability thing for me, just to keep posting every day. So I'm just going to keep grinding to keep doing videos and to continue to get better."
While Watts continues to hone his game in his second year with the team, he's always ready to step up whenever his name gets called. Watts talked about leaning on Clarke Petterson, Randy Staats, and Thomas Hoggarth for help in picking up the different nuances of the Thunderbirds' offence.
"Just the intricacies have really changed the way that I play and the way that I think about the game. It's definitely different from what I've experienced in the past, but the way that this team moves the ball and how effective we are on offence, it's definitely rubbed off on me, so I've been very appreciative of that," Watts said.
With the Thunderbirds starting the season at 2-0, the team is looking to continue to carry their play to another appearance in the postseason come the spring - and hopefully hoisting hardware at the end.
But for Watts and the rest of his teammates, they're staying focused on the present and taking care of business when it comes to the matchup in front of them.
"It feels like nothing has really changed from training camp. The boys are rolling, and confidence is through the roof. Everybody just embraces each other in our room, and nobody gets too high or low," Watts said. "It's awesome to be a part of that where you're playing your best ball, and everybody is still very down to earth and being themselves instead of letting it get to their heads."
"It's great to just be around this group and have that next-game mentality where, even though we won the last two games, it's like, 'Alright, what's next?' We're just really hungry, and I've been so excited to be a part of the process."
National Lacrosse League Stories from January 15, 2026
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- Watts Grinding to Earn Place with Thunderbirds - Halifax Thunderbirds
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
