Cardiff Devils to Retire Neil Francis’ Number 29

The Cardiff Devils will officially retire the number 29 in honour of Neil Francis and his service to the club over the last 34 years. Pictured above:  Francis during his playing days with the DevilsFrancis originally signed for the Devils at the age of 17 ahead of the 1992-93 season, icing 40 times in his first season of pro hockey.  Over the next 14 years, Francis played for the Devils in the British National League, the Ice Hockey Superleague and eventually the Elite Ice Hockey League.  In total, he played more than 600 games for the Devils before hanging up the skates and moving behind the bench as an assistant coach for the 2009-10 season. 

WATCH THE MOMENT NEIL FRANCIS FOUND OUT Pictured above: Franny with James Manson, Jason Stone and Stevie Lyle celebrating a championship in his early playing daysHe ran the bench for player-coach Gerad Adams for the next 5 years, working closely with Adams to oversee recruitment and hockey operations.  Francis resigned from his role as assistant coach midway through the 2013-14 season after Adams had been let go, and walked away from the club he had been a part of for over two decades.

But he wasn’t done with the Devils and in fact worked tirelessly behind the scenes to find a new ownership group to take the Devils forward ahead of the 2014-15 season. 

He found that group in Todd Kelman, Steve King, Brian Parker, Craig Shostak and Kelly Hughes who took over the Devils in June 2014 with Francis once again behind the bench.  Francis insisted that they hire Andrew Lord as a player/coach after seeing Lord as a player for the Devils the previous season and knowing Lord wanted to get into coaching. Pictured above: Franny as the buzzer sounds to win the Challenge Cup in 2015He resumed his role as an assistant coach and bench boss for Lord and again helped with player recruitment in what became the most successful 6-year period in Devils history.  The team won the Challenge Cup in 2015, then again in 2017 along with the Elite League Title.  They won the league again in 2018 and the Playoffs that same season.  They won the 2019 Playoff Championship as well and were in first place when Covid put a stop to the 2019-20 season in March of that year. Pictured above: The 2015 Challenge Cup ChampionsHIP TEAM PHOTODevils’ Managing Director Todd Kelman spoke about Neil Francis and what he means to the club:

“Franny has lived and breathed this club for nearly 35 years.  We refer to him as ‘The FRAN-chise’ for good reason.

“He is the link to the past players because he played with most of them and still keeps in touch with many of the Devils that built this great club long before we ever arrived. 

“He made the call to me that changed my life and the lives of 4 hockey loving owners in Calgary, Canada.  He got us here.  Not everyone who follows the Devils knows the story, but we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him. 

“Retired jerseys are the greatest honour a club can give to a former player, and nobody means more to this team than Neil Francis. ​​​​​​​Pictured above: Franny with his family after the 2022 Playoff win“He has done nearly every job in this organisation and done it with the same passion and dedication that he put into being a player or a coach or now a director of hockey operations.  

“People probably never noticed that we have never let anyone wear number 29 since we got here, and the five of us from Calgary talked about retiring his number when we felt we had been here long enough to be able to do this for him.  I guess 11 years is long enough. 

“We wanted his family there when we told him and, in particular his dad Denis, who is a life-long Devils fan.  I know this matters a whole lot to him and to Neil’s wife Laura and his daughters Hollie and Sophia.”

The number 29 jersey will be officially retired on Saturday 3^rd January before the Devils face off against the Dundee Stars.