Bobby Francis

Bobby Francis
Born	December 5, 1958 North Battleford, SK, CAN
Height	5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight	174 lb (79 kg; 12 st 6 lb)
Position	Centre
Shot	Right
Played for	NHL Detroit Red Wings IHL Muskegon Mohawks Salt Lake Golden Eagles CHL Birmingham Bulls Oklahoma City Stars Colorado Flames AHL Adirondack 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 was the head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes 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

The Coyotes had chosen to hire Bob Francis, who over the past 2 years, had been the assistant coach for the Boston Bruins. His only NHL experience was with the Coyotes. Francis was fired in 2004 after a slow start, and was replaced by assistant coach Rick Bowness.

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 ().

Team	Year	Regular season							Post season
		G	W	L	T	OTL	Pts	Division rank	Result
PHX	1999–2000	82	39	31	8	4	90	3rd in Pacific	Lost in first round
PHX	2000–01	82	35	27	17	3	90	4th in Pacific	Missed Playoffs
PHX	2001–02	82	40	27	9	6	95	2nd in Pacific	Lost in first round
PHX	2002–03	82	31	35	11	5	78	4th in Pacific	Missed Playoffs
PHX	2003–04	62	20	24	15	3	(68)	5th in Pacific	(fired)
Total		390	165	144	60	21

Personal

Although he was born in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, he spent much of his youth growing up in Long Beach, New York, where his father was coaching the New York Rangers. Bob Francis holds both Canadian and American citizenship. In September 2012, it was revealed that Francis has lost his balance and equilibrium and requires a walker to get around. 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.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Eliteprospects.com, or Legends of Hockey, or The Internet Hockey Database