Ronald Michael "Ronnie Franchise" Francis Jr. - Born March 1, 1963 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario is a Canadian/American retired ice Hockey centre and coach and is the current general manager of Seattle Kracken.

Francis played in the 1975 and 1976 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments with Sault Ste. Marie Pee Wee.

J. Ross Robertson Cup Junior finalist 1981 with Soo Greyhounds.

- 1985 Ice Hockey World Championships Silver Medal Winner with Team Canada.

- Stanley Cup Champion 1991, 1992 with Pittsburgh Penguins. He scored the 1992 Stanley Cup winning goal.
Stanley Cup finalist 2002

- Prince of Wales Trophy Champion 1991, 1992 with Pittsburgh Penguins, 2002 with Carolina Hurricanes.

- NHL President's Trophy Champion 1993 with Pittsburgh Penguins.

- Lady Byng Trophy Winner - 1995, 1998 with Pittsburgh Penguins, 2002 with with Carolina Hurricanes.

- Frank J. Selke Trophy Winner 1995.

- King Clancy Memorial Trophy Winner 2002.

Francis was playing his 2nd year of junior Hockey with the Soo Greyhounds, having a solid season, scoring 18 goals (48 pts) in 25 games for the Soo, when he was called up to the NHL, making debut with Hartford Whalers on November 14, 1981 vs Washington Capitals at Hartford Civic Center in a 4-0 Washington win. He played with the Whalers for the remainder of the season, scoring 25 goals (43 pts) in 59 games.

Francis scored his 1st NHL goal vs Vincent Tremblay of Toronto Maple Leafs at 4:09 of 2nd period on November 18, 1981 at Hartford Civic Center in a 8-5 Hartford win.

Francis scored his 1st NHL hat-trick vs Grant Fuhr of Edmonton Oilers, and added a 4th goal vs Andy Moog on February 12, 1984 at Hartford Civic Center in a 11-0 spanking. His 1st goal was the game winner.

Francis led the Whalers in scoring 5 times and assists 9 times.
Just before his 22nd birthday, the Whalers name Francis team captain in February 1985.

Francis was traded to Pittsburgh Penguins in March 1991 and would help lead the Penguins to the 1991 Stanley Cup championship. He scored 7 goals during the playoffs, 4 of them game winners.

Francis had a decent season with the Penguins the next season, but once again would excel his game in the playoffs, scoring 8 goals and 19 assists. His 8th goal was the 1992 Stanley Cup winner.

Francis quietly starred in Pittsburgh for 7 full seasons, always leading by example and twice serving as team captain. He led the NHL twice in assists, was twice awarded the Lady Byng Trophy for sportsmanship and won the Selke Trophy as the best defensive forward.

The Carolina Hurricanes would sign Francis as a free agent in July 1998. The Hurricanes were actually the Hartford Whalers, just new name and city. Francis was back home in a sense. He was named team captain.

Francis played 5 seasons for the Hurricanes, leading them twice in scoring. He was awarded his 3rd Lady Byng Trophy in 2002, also winning the King Clancy Trophy that year.

Francis led the Hurricanes to the Prince of Wales Trophy championship in 2002. They played a powerful Detroit Red Wings in 2002 Stanley Cup finals, with Francis scoring the game winner in overtime at Joe Lewis Arena to start the series, but the Hurricanes would fall to Detroit 4-1 in games.

Francis was traded to Toronto Maple Leafs in March 2004 for their playoff run, helping the Maple Leafs into the 2nd round. He later retired as a player.

Francis played in 1731 regular season NHL games, scoring 549 goals (79 GWG / 4 OTG), 1249 assists with 977 penalty minutes and 171 NHL playoff games, scoring 46 goals (11 GWG / 2 OTG), 97 assists with 95 penalty minutes.

Francis played in NHL All-Star Games 1983, 1985, 1990, 1996.

Francis averaged more than a point a game in 23 NHL seasons.

Francis had 22 consecutive 50-point seasons, equaling Gordie Howe's record.

Francis was the Carolina Hurricanes assistant coach from 2009 to 2011, their general manager from 2014 to 2018.

Ron Francis was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007.

Ron Francis was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 2013.

In 2017, Francis was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in the first 100 years of the league.

Francis Quote
"I understand that my game in itself was not dominating like a Gretzky or a Lemieux or Messier," he said in 2006. "I never had the physical talent or ability to dominate a situation, but I used my talents and drew from the best of my teammates' abilities."

NOTE
Francis became the 1st player to win both the Frank J. Selke Trophy and the Lady Byng Trophy in the same season.

Francis wore number 4 during his NHL rookie season.