Francis Lessard

Francis Lessard (born May 30, 1979) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward. He last played with the Trois-Rivières Blizzard of Ligue Nord-Américaine de Hockey (LNAH). He has played for the Atlanta Thrashers and Ottawa Senators of the NHL, but has spent most of his career in the AHL. Lessard is generally known as an enforcer for his physical style of play and his ability to protect his teammates during a game.

Francis Lessard
Born (1979-05-30) May 30, 1979
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 225 lb (102 kg; 16 st 1 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shot Right
Played for Atlanta Thrashers
Ottawa Senators
NHL Draft 80th overall, 1997
Carolina Hurricanes
Playing career 19992016

Playing career

As a youth, Lessard played in the 1992 and 1993 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments with the Rive-Nord Elites minor ice hockey team.[1]

Drafted from the QMJHL's Val-d'Or Foreurs, Lessard's rights were traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in 1999 while still at junior level. He spent three seasons with their AHL affiliate the Philadelphia Phantoms before he was traded to the Atlanta Thrashers.

With the Thrashers, Lessard made his National Hockey League debut with the Thrashers during the 2001–02 season. In that season, Lessard won the Calder Cup with the Chicago Wolves. Lessard played 91 games over four seasons with Atlanta before moving to the New York Rangers organization in 2006. He played two seasons for the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL before signing with the Phoenix Coyotes in 2008, playing two seasons for the San Antonio Rampage of the AHL. He signed with the Ottawa Senators in August 2010.[2]

Career statistics

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1996–97 Val-d'Or Foreurs QMJHL 66 1 9 10 312
1997–98 Val-d'Or Foreurs QMJHL 63 3 20 23 338 19 1 6 7 101
1998–99 Drummondville Voltigeurs QMJHL 53 12 36 48 295
1999–00 Philadelphia Phantoms AHL 78 4 8 12 416 5 0 1 1 7
2000–01 Philadelphia Phantoms AHL 64 3 7 10 330 10 0 0 0 33
2001–02 Philadelphia Phantoms AHL 60 0 6 6 251
2001–02 Atlanta Thrashers NHL 5 0 0 0 26
2001–02 Chicago Wolves AHL 7 2 1 3 34 15 0 1 1 40
2002–03 Atlanta Thrashers NHL 18 0 2 2 61
2002–03 Chicago Wolves AHL 50 2 5 7 194 1 0 0 0 0
2003–04 Atlanta Thrashers NHL 62 1 1 2 181
2005–06 Atlanta Thrashers NHL 6 0 0 0 0
2005–06 Chicago Wolves AHL 36 2 3 5 161
2006–07 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 58 3 6 9 309
2007–08 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 14 4 1 5 49
2008–09 San Antonio Rampage AHL 59 2 2 4 324
2009–10 San Antonio Rampage AHL 61 2 2 4 289
2010–11 Binghamton Senators AHL 36 2 1 3 187
2010–11 Ottawa Senators NHL 24 0 0 0 78
2011–12 Binghamton Senators AHL 43 1 1 2 138
2012–13 Cornwall River Kings LNAH 36 2 8 10 147 9 2 1 3 48
2013–14 Cornwall River Kings LNAH 31 3 6 9 192 6 0 1 1 22
2014–15 Cornwall River Kings LNAH 15 4 2 6 81
NHL totals 115 1 3 4 346

Awards and honours

Transactions

  • August 8, 2010 - Signed as an unrestricted free agent by the Ottawa Senators.
  • July 3, 2008 - Signed as a free agent by the Phoenix Coyotes.
  • September 13, 2006 - Invited by the New York Rangers to training camp.
  • March 15, 2002 - Atlanta Thrashers traded David Harlock and third-round (Tyler Redenbach) and seventh-round (Joe Pavelski) selections in 2003 to the Philadelphia Flyers for Francis Lessard.
  • May 25, 1999 - Carolina Hurricanes traded Francis Lessard to the Philadelphia Flyers for eighth-round selection (Antti Jokella) in 1999.
  • June 21, 1997 - Drafted by the Carolina Hurricanes in the third round (80th overall) in 1997.

References

  1. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  2. "Francis Lessard # - RW". TSN. Retrieved August 6, 2010.


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