Poll: Thoughts on Ron Francis

Thoughts on Ron Francis


  • Total voters
    60

Finlandia WOAT

js7.4x8fnmcf5070124
May 23, 2010
24,134
23,681
No.

If he admits that he can't find a better center than Derek Ryan after 3 offseasons, yes.

And just watch, if they re-sign Ryan, it will also be a "Well, in this situation, re-signing the AHL center makes the most sense". At what point do we have to admit that Kevin Durant or Steven Stamkos' miraculous ability to consistently get open looks despite being top-5 offensive players in their sport is less because the opposing players are the only guys on the court/ice not aware of this and more because they're high IQ guys who instinctively know where the play is going and how to act accordingly, so well in fact that to even the expert, experienced viewer it looks as if they did nothing at all?
 

Marlowe Syn

R-O-C-K-F-O-R-D
Sep 2, 2008
2,176
78
I don't have a major issue with Francis, and am not mad he didn't try and make a bigger splash at the tdl. If the Canes don't make the playoff then I'm looking more at Peters than Francis. This squad was/is poised to make the playoffs, but they players just don't seem to be interested in stepping up their game to make it a reality. I'm watching teams like the Wild and Flyers that are playing with some intensity, Carolina ain't. In my book, Peters better be gone if this downward trend continues. Francis has done enough, I think, to earn another year. If the Canes are in this same position one year from, I'll re-visit my Francis opinion. I see this year's slide more on the players and coaching. I think we have the talent, just need the drive.
 

Boom Boom Apathy

I am the Professor. Deal with it!
Sep 6, 2006
48,174
97,101
Maybe he can call up Hextall and get some tips how to rebuild. Theirs was much faster than ours.

Philly didn't really rebuild though. They have made the playoffs 5 out of 8 times since the Canes last made the playoffs, have never gone more than one season without making the playoffs and other than when they lucked out in the lottery, only 1 time picked in the top 10. They've never been bad enough for long enough to part ways with the likes of Giroux.

No doubt, Hextall has done a great job keeping them competitive, keeping their strong core, which was there before he became GM, in place (Giroux, Voracek, Simmons, Couturier), and adding some strong youth (Konecny, Gostisbehere, Provorov), but when he took over the team in 2013, he wasn't rebuilding. It helps that they spend $15M more than the Canes do.

Can't argue with results though, and Hextall is getting them. Just pointing out that it wasn't really a rebuild in any typical sense.
 

Hulkacaniac

You MUST
Jun 4, 2015
1,712
9,331
NC
It was fine at the beginning of his tenure when the plan was accumulate picks and young players and build through the draft. I just don't know what the plan is now. Our team isn't bad enough now to build through the draft. So you've got to make some trades to improve your team in a reasonable amount of time. It just seems like Francis is willing to wait, just not sure for what though. Peters obviously is frustrated by losing so much and wants Francis to upgrade the roster but is so afraid of losing he won't properly utilize players who are inexperienced or he doesn't trust. But then there's no way to enforce discipline if you don't use the ice time hammer. Francis has got to do show he's willing to do something significant this offseason if he's going to lead the team to the playoffs, let alone to a Stanley cup. As far as peters goes, is he too out of touch with the room? I don't know, but I do believe the team is talented enough just to make the playoffs. Goaltending has been far from the only problem.
 

MinJaBen

Canes Sharks Boy
Sponsor
Dec 14, 2015
20,678
79,638
Durm
holding off on any real judgement until he has a full offseason with an owner who will actually let him (supposedly) spend money

Yeah, I'm curious how much the pocketbook is really open and if Francis himself is willing to use it if it is open. I mean, the only trade we executed this year was to save money on a two-way contract for a 4th line player we sent down. Doesn't sound like the kind of spending we were hoping for.
 

tarheelhockey

Offside Review Specialist
Feb 12, 2010
84,982
137,355
Bojangles Parking Lot
Jooris has a 1-way contract. But I don't for a moment believe that the trade was an attempt to save money.

It says a lot that practically the first thing Francis said during his presser was (loosely quoted) "We did free up some money... uhhhh not that it was about the money but... we freed up some money today".
 

Canes

Registered User
Oct 31, 2017
24,996
69,428
An Oblate Spheroid
holding off on any real judgement until he has a full offseason with an owner who will actually let him (supposedly) spend money
Being on a budget didn't stop him from the Rask or Darling signings. That's 8 million dollars we could really use, be it directly on players or revamping our scouting, coaching, etc.

Of course, there is always a way to legitimize these signings for some so Francis can't be judged on it.

I'm scared of what he will do if he does get to spend more than usual. With our luck, we'll have the next Clarkson or Beleskey on our hands.
 

AD Skinner

Registered User
Mar 18, 2009
12,846
38,721
bubble bath
I think Francis is afraid. Almost all of his big moves have been whiffs and i wonder if he is second guessing himself afraid to whiff again. Lack, darling, Kruger, trading Eric Staal, all looking to be mistakes or washes at best. Williams, teravainen, van riemsdyk have been solid but outside of when the TSA line was really humming those are all support players. The biggest impact players on the team are Aho and Slavin, a second and fourth round pick respectively. Imagine how terrible we'd be if we hadn't lucked into Slavin my god it's horrific to think about.
 

MinJaBen

Canes Sharks Boy
Sponsor
Dec 14, 2015
20,678
79,638
Durm
So Lindholm, Hanifin, and TVR are all RFA's needing new contracts. What do you think each one of them is worth?

Lindy will get something like 4,5 around 5 years
Hanifin will go for a bridge deal, most likely 2 or 3 years around 3 million
TVR might get 2x2

Hanifin 2 years x $3 million bridge
Lindholm 3 years x $4.5 million (buys one year of UFA)
TVR 2 years x $1.5 million bridge

Aho also will be eligible to sign a contract on July 1st, and I bet his deal gets done before any of the others.

Aho: $6x6
Hanifin: $5x7
Lindy: $5x4
TVR: $2.5x3
 

bluedevil58

Registered User
Oct 19, 2017
2,168
3,126
Hey look! Staal is on his way to putting in 40 this year. Further evidence you don't trade first line centers. What the hell?
 

CandyCanes

Caniac turned Jerkiac
Jan 8, 2015
7,159
24,571
Hey look! Staal is on his way to putting in 40 this year. Further evidence you don't trade first line centers. What the hell?

I'll say it again I think the trade needed to be done. But we had an opportunity to bring him back in free agency, if the price was $3.5mill we made a mistake. Even 40pt Eric Staal was worth $3.5mill.
 

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