New job for Ron Francis
Sault Ste. Marie native and former Soo Greyhounds centre Ron Francis has been named general manager of the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League.
The 51-year old Francis takes over as Carolina GM from Jim Rutherford, who recently stepped down after 20 years on the job.
“Based on Jim’s decision to step down as GM, now is a good time to go in a new direction,” Hurricanes owner Peter Karmanos said in a statement. “Ron has dedicated himself to learning all aspects of running a hockey team in the past eight years, working in player development, on the coaching staff and in hockey operations.”
Francis played in the Ontario Hockey League with the Greyhounds from 1980 until 1982 before going on to a spectacular NHL career with Hartford Whalers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Carolina and Toronto Maple Leafs.
In all, Francis played in 1,731 regular-season games in the NHL and 171 more playoff matches. He scored 595 goals and totaled 1,941 points.
PHOTO: Ron Francis, new general manager of the Carolina Hurricanes.