It appears the Pittsburgh Penguins [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins] are adding a franchise icon to their front office staff. On Friday, president of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas announced that the team has named Ron Francis as Special Advisor, Hockey Operations. According to the press release from the Penguins, Francis will "assist the Penguins' hockey operations leadership group with strategic planning, roster construction and optimization of all internal systems and processes to help further implement best practices within the organization." He will also support the minor league and player development staff, and he will play an advisor role in next week's NHL Entry Draft [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/latest-news/what-should-the-penguins-do-with-their-22nd-overall-pick-heres-the-case-for-each-scenario] as well as free agency, training camp, and the trade deadline. "Ron's playing experience, management experience, and familiarity with the Penguins and Pittsburgh will be a great benefit to our organization and all members of our management team," Dubas said in the press release. "We look forward to having a person of Ron's experience and character in our front office as we continue to work to build the Penguins back into a perennial Stanley Cup contender." A native of Sault Ste. Marie, Francis's NHL career resume speaks for itself, as the two-time Stanley Cup champion finished his 23-year NHL career with 549 goals and 1,798 points, which ranks fifth all-time. He spent eight seasons with the Penguins from 1990-98, winning both of his Stanley Cups in Pittsburgh in 1991 and 1992 and notching the best season of his NHL career in 1995-96 with 119 points. He is a three-time Lady Byng Trophy winner (1995, 1998, 2002) and also won the King Clancy Memorial Trophy in 2001-02 as well as the Frank J. Selke Trophy as the league's best defensive forward in 1994-95. Most recently, Francis was with the NHL's newest team, the Seattle Kraken [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/seattle-kraken/], starting in 2019 as their general manager and as their president of hockey operations in 2025-26. Prior to that, he spent 12 years as a member of the the Carolina Hurricanes [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes]' front office staff from 2006-2018. What Should The Penguins Do With Their 22nd Overall Pick? Here's The Case For Each Scenario. [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/e5fadd68-ce73-44a7-9ded-dd7ea14eb0ac.jpeg] What Should The Penguins Do With Their 22nd Overall Pick? Here's The Case For Each Scenario. The 2026 NHL Entry Draft is officially eight days away, and speculation is beginning to run rampant for a lot of teams. Trade rumors are flying high. Draft boards are populating social media and various substack sites. Names are circulating like crazy. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/latest-news/what-should-the-penguins-do-with-their-22nd-overall-pick-heres-the-case-for-each-scenario] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bookmark THN - Pittsburgh Penguins on your Google News tab [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw/sections/CAQqEAgAKgcICjCvqtILMO7F6QMwquDfCA?hl=en-CA&gl=CA&ceid=CA%3Aen] to follow the latest Penguins news, roster moves, player features, and more!
