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Bobby Francis
Born (1958-12-05) December 5, 1958 (age 65)
North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada
Height 5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight 174 lb (79 kg; 12 st 6 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Right
Played for Detroit Red Wings
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 1980–1987

Robert Emile Francis (born December 5, 1958) is a Canadian-born American former professional ice hockey player and coach. He played 14 games in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings during the 1982–83 season, though most of his career was spent in the minor leagues. He was the head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes of the from June 1999 to February 2004. In 2002 Francis became the first Coyotes' coach to win the Jack Adams Award. He is the son of former NHL general manager and coach Emile Francis.

Coaching career

Francis served as a player-coach with the Salt Lake Golden Eagles of the International Hockey League (IHL) in 1986, followed by four years as head coach of the IHL's Utah Grizzlies. [1] After head coaching stints in the American Hockey League (AHL) for the Saint John Flames and Providence Bruins, Francis spent two years at the NHL level as an assistant coach to Pat Burns of the Boston Bruins before being hired by the Phoenix Coyotes in 1999. [1] In 2002, after leading the Coyotes to a 40-27-9-6 record, and the most points in the league following that year's Olympic break, Francis was awarded the Jack Adams Award as Coach of the Year. [2] Midway through his fifth season at the helm of the Coyotes in 2004, Francis was fired after a slow start and replaced by assistant coach Rick Bowness. [3]

On April 26, 2006, Francis signed a two year-contract to coach HIFK in the Finnish SM-liiga. On December 19, 2006, Francis's contract was terminated. [4]

Personal life

Although Francis was born in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, he spent much of his youth growing up in Long Beach, New York, while his father was coaching the New York Rangers, and holds both Canadian and American citizenship. In September 2012, it was revealed that Francis had lost his balance and equilibrium and required a walker to get around. [5] The symptoms began showing during the 2003–04 NHL season. Francis also revealed his struggle with alcoholism, which played a key factor in his dismissal from HIFK. [5]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1972–73 Brooklyn Stars NYJHL 38 36 34 70 44 — — — — —
1973–74 Brooklyn Stars NYJHL 41 41 53 94 63 12 17 11 28 24
1974–75 Bronx Shamrocks NYJHL 40 53 59 112 71 — — — — —
1975–76 Great Bay Vikings NEJHL 40 62 74 136 61 — — — — —
1976–77 University of New Hampshire ECAC 13 2 7 9 12 — — — — —
1977–78 University of New Hampshire ECAC 27 7 14 21 6 — — — — —
1978–79 University of New Hampshire ECAC 35 20 46 66 44 — — — — —
1979–80 University of New Hampshire ECAC 28 19 23 42 30 — — — — —
1980–81 Muskegon Mohawks IHL 27 16 17 33 33 — — — — —
1980–81 Birmingham Bulls CHL 18 6 21 27 20 — — — — —
1981–82 Oklahoma City Stars CHL 80 48 66 114 76 4 1 2 3 11
1982–83 Colorado Flames CHL 26 20 16 36 24 — — — — —
1982–83 Adirondack Red Wings AHL 17 3 8 11 0 — — — — —
1982–83 Detroit Red Wings NHL 14 2 0 2 0 — — — — —
1983–84 Colorado Flames CHL 68 32 50 82 53 1 0 1 1 0
1984–85 Salt Lake Golden Eagles IHL 53 24 16 40 36 6 1 1 2 0
1985–86 Salt Lake Golden Eagles IHL 82 32 44 76 163 5 0 4 4 10
1986–87 Salt Lake Golden Eagles IHL 82 29 69 98 86 17 9 8 17 13
IHL totals 244 101 146 247 318 28 10 13 23 23
NHL totals 14 2 0 2 0 — — — — —

NHL coaching

Team Year Regular season Post season
G W L T OTL Pts Division rank W L Result
Phoenix Coyotes 1999–00 82 39 31 8 4 90 3rd in Pacific 1 4 Lost in first round
Phoenix Coyotes 2000–01 82 35 27 17 3 90 4th in Pacific — — Missed Playoffs
Phoenix Coyotes 2001–02 82 40 27 9 6 95 2nd in Pacific 1 4 Lost in first round
Phoenix Coyotes 2002–03 82 31 35 11 5 78 4th in Pacific — — Missed Playoffs
Phoenix Coyotes 2003–04 62 20 24 15 3 55 5th in Pacific — — Fired
NHL totals 390 165 144 60 21

References

  1. ^ a b "Francis Is Coyotes New Coach". CBS News. June 16, 1999. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  2. ^ "Jose Theodore named NHL MVP | CBC Sports". CBC. CBC News. June 27, 2002. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  3. ^ Garay, Anabelle (February 24, 2004). "Phoenix Coyotes Fire Bob Francis As Coach (washingtonpost.com)". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  4. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on May 24, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2006.{{ cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title ( link)[ permanent dead link]
  5. ^ a b Bickley, Dan (September 28, 2012). "Ex-coach Bob Francis now fighting for quality of life". USA Today. Retrieved October 1, 2016.

External links

Preceded by Winner of the Phil Esposito Trophy
1981–82 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Winner of the Tommy Ivan Trophy
1981–82 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Head coach of the Providence Bruins
1995–97 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes
1999– 2004 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Winner of the Jack Adams Award
2002 		Succeeded by
Preceded by HIFK head coach
2006 		Succeeded by
Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/?title=Bobby_Francis&oldid=1204579670"