1982-83 O-Pee-Chee 123 Ron Francis Hockey Card (Front)
1982-83 O-Pee-Chee 123 Ron Francis Hockey Card (Back)
1982-83 O-Pee-Chee NHL Hockey Card Checklist
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Card Notes
Audio Version:
Ron is a bachelor. His last amateur club was the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League. He scored 57 goals and 92 assists for 149 points at Sault Ste. Marie in 1979-80.
Trivia snippet: Most points, defenseman, season 80 – Mark Howe (1979-80, 24 goals, 56 assists).
En Français
Ron est célibataire. C’est avec les Greyhounds de Sault-Ste-Marie qu’il termina sa carrière d’amateur. Il produisit 57 buts et 92 assistances pour les Greyhounds en 1979-80.
Points en une saison pour un défenseur 80 – Mark Howe (1979-80, 24 buts, 56 assistances).
Details
Sort of an ERROR on the back of this 1982-83 O-Pee-Chee hockey card. Yes, Ron Francis did score 57 goals and total 149 points in 1979-80 but not with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds as the notes would suggest. In fact, he had that performance with the Sault Ste. Marie North Stars AAA Midget team.
Francis played for the Greyhounds in 1980-81, putting up a modest 26 goals and 69 points over 64 games as an OHL rookie. Still, it was enough for the Hartford Whalers to select him fourth overall at the 1981 NHL Entry Draft behind just Dale Hawerchuk, Doug Smith and Bobby Carpenter.
Ron appeared in 25 games for the Greyhounds in 1981-82, along with 59 games in the NHL with the Whalers. His rookie NHL numbers were pretty decent with 25 goals and 68 points. This got him some looks for the Calder Trophy but the award was quite easily taken by Dale Hawerchuk.
Between 1981-82 and 2003-04, Francis played in 1,731 regular season and 171 playoff games in the National Hockey League with the Whalers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Carolina Hurricanes and Toronto Maple Leafs. He ranks fifth all-time for most regular season games played in the NHL, just 48 behind leader Patrick Marleau.
The two time Stanley Cup champion with Pittsburgh was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007.