| Francis Bouillon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | October 17, 1975 New York City, New York |
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) |
| Weight | 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb) |
| Position | Defense |
| Shoots | Left |
| NHL team Former teams |
Montreal Canadiens Nashville Predators |
| National team |  United States
|
| NHL Draft | Undrafted |
| Playing career | 1996–present |
Francis Bouillon (born Francis J. Bouillon on October 17, 1975) is an American professional hockey defenseman for the Montreal Canadiens in the National Hockey League (NHL).
Playing Career[]
Francis made his professional debut the 1996–97 season in the ECHL with the Wheeling Nailers and played the following season in the IHL with the Quebec Rafales before he was signed as a free agent to an NHL contract by the Montreal Canadiens in 1998.
Francis played the next 11 seasons, the majority of his career (except for a short stint with the Predators in 2002–03) within the Canadiens organization.
At 5'8" and 201 lbs, he is considered small for an NHL defencemen but is never one to shy away from physical play. According to Pierre Houde, he is one of the strongest players in the NHL, according to official physical tests.
On September 30, 2009 (prior to the 2009–10 season), Francis was signed to a one-year contract as a late inclusion to the Nashville Predators after joining the team on a try-out for training camp.
In returning to the Predators after an initial four game stint in 2002, Francis established himself within the Predators defense as a stay-at-home defenceman to appear in 81 games, missing only a single game for 3 goals and 11 points.
On June 18, 2010, Francis signed a two-year extension to remain with the Predators.
On July 1, 2012, Francis signed a one-year deal worth 1.5 million with the Montreal Canadiens. He re-signed to a one-year contract extension on March 20, 2013.
Career Statistics[]
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1992–93 | Laval Titan | QMJHL | 46 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 45 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Laval Titan | QMJHL | 68 | 3 | 15 | 18 | 129 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Laval Titan Collège Français | QMJHL | 72 | 8 | 25 | 33 | 115 | 20 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 21 | ||
| 1995–96 | Granby Predateurs | QMJHL | 68 | 11 | 35 | 46 | 156 | 21 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 30 | ||
| 1996–97 | Wheeling Nailers | ECHL | 69 | 10 | 32 | 42 | 77 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 1997–98 | Quebec Rafales | IHL | 71 | 8 | 27 | 35 | 76 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Fredericton Canadiens | AHL | 79 | 19 | 35 | 54 | 174 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1999–00 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 74 | 3 | 13 | 16 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Quebec Citadelles | AHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 29 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Quebec Citadelles | AHL | 38 | 8 | 14 | 22 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 28 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Hamilton Bulldogs | AHL | 29 | 1 | 12 | 13 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 20 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 73 | 2 | 16 | 18 | 70 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 2004–05 | Leksands IF | Swe-1 | 21 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 67 | 3 | 19 | 22 | 34 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 10 | ||
| 2006–07 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 62 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 74 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 61 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 2008–09 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 54 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 53 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 81 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 50 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 2010–11 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 44 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 66 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 33 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2012–13 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 48 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 21 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | ||
| NHL totals | 724 | 30 | 113 | 143 | 502 | 46 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 46 | ||||
International Statistics[]
| Year | Team | Comp | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | United States | WC | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Senior int'l totals | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
Personal Life[]
Francis was born to a Haitian father and a French Canadian mother. He moved to Quebec City, Quebec with his mother when he was three years old.
He played junior hockey in the Quebec Junior Hockey League with the Laval Titans and the Granby Predateurs where he was the captain when they won the 1996 Memorial Cup.
Francis is married to his wife Ginette and they have two sons named Michael and Anthony. He & his family reside in Montreal and he also retains his United States citizenship.
Francis' nicknames in English are "Cube" or "Soupy" (as a reference to bouillon cubes), "Frank the Tank," "Franky B" and "Bou."