Robert Francz
Robert Francz (born 30 March 1978 in Bad Muskau ) is a German ice hockey player.
Career
Francz began his career in the offspring of the Star Bulls Rosenheim, where he played with the junior team in the 1994/95 season in the junior league. There, the winger completed 29 games in which he was able to achieve 24 points scorer. In summer 1995, he discovered those responsible for the Augsburger Panther and transferred the Linkisschützen in the German Hockey League. When the Panthers Francz completed his first 42 -DEL games and also came in the junior team at the Augsburg young panthers used. After this one-year interlude, the attacker left Germany in the direction of North America, where he signed a contract with the Peterborough Petes of the Canadian Junior Football League OHL. In the Petes to Francz could continue to develop and scored in his first season in 68 games 32 points scorer. Consequently, some talent scouts from the NHL took notice of the learned striker. Finally, it was Phoenix Coyotes, who selected him during the NHL Entry Draft in 1997 in the sixth round to total 151 position.
Francz then remained two seasons in the OHL before he finally at the end of the 1998/99 season in the American Hockey League with the Springfield Falcons, the former farm team the Coyotes, changed. His last year in the Peterborough Petes was also his best. So the striker wore the jersey 70 times the Petes and was able to achieve 59 points. In the following years, however, could never Francz interspersed with the Springfield Falcons and got instead a regular game time at the Mississippi Sea Wolves of the East Coast Hockey League. After he eventually barely figured there are opportunities on a long-term commitment in the NHL, the attacker matches returned to 64- AHL back to his native Germany, where he joined the Frankfurt Lions. It was followed almost two years at the Hamburg Freezers with whom Robert Francz could move into the play-off quarter-finals in 2004, but there failed with 2:3 games on the eventual champions Frankfurt Lions.
After his contract was not renewed at the Freezers, the winger moved in the summer of 2005 within the League to the foxes Duisburg, where he took over the captain's office in August 2006. A month later, Francz moved but during a game in Nuremberg after a hard check to a torn ACL, and then continued the whole season 2007/08. After he had recovered from a serious injury, the management of the Sinupret Ice Tigers the club loose players paid in August 2008 with a sample contract, which ultimately was extended in a contract until December 2008. After eleven games in which he scored no points scorer, the now 30 -year-old has been released from the Ice Tigers for unknown reasons by the service. In October 2008 Francz received a contract offer from the Kassel Huskies until the end of season 2008/ 09, which he accepted.
Awards and achievements
- 2004 reaching the play-off semi-finals with the Hamburg Freezers