The acquisition of Ron Francis in ‘The Trade’ from Hartford in 1991 completed the Penguins’ transformation into legitimate Stanley Cup contenders. One of the best two-way centers in NHL history, Francis enjoyed his most dominating offensive stretch of hockey with Pittsburgh. Teaming on a line with fellow Hall of Famer Jaromir Jagr, Francis led all NHL players with 407 assists and ranked third with 548 points during the final six years of his Penguins career from 1992-98. In that span, he hit 100 points two times and 90 points four times.

Francis, one of seven Penguins to post multiple 100-point seasons, was a superb playmaker, leading the NHL with 92 helpers in 1995-96. Francis’ 449 assists were tops among Penguins players and third among all NHL players during his Pittsburgh career; during that same span his point total ranked third among Penguins behind Jagr and Mario Lemieux and ranked 10th among all NHL skaters.

Francis delivered in the playoffs, tallying at least 17 points in four of his eight playoff seasons with Pittsburgh. His best work came in 1992, when he led the NHL with 19 assists. That spring, when Lemieux was sidelined with a broken hand, Francis stepped up to deliver six goals and 10 points in the final four games against the New York Rangers, including a Game 4 hat trick that included the overtime winner. Francis ranked fourth among all NHL players in playoff points and assists during his Penguins career.

Twenty years post-retirement, Francis still sits fifth in NHL history with 1,798 points and second with 1,249 assists.