'KEEP GROWING MY GAME'

The draft was only the beginning.
Coming up through juniors, Ryan Francis was playing to get picked. Once he heard his name called, going in the fifth round of the 2020 NHL Draft, it was back to work with new goals in mind.
"It was a crazy day," he said. "You're anxious all day waiting to hear your name called. There was a lot of excitement, a little relief to hear my name. I was obviously super excited to get drafted, but it was just the first step. I'm just trying to keep working and keep growing my game."

The play-making forward had possibly the strongest season of his junior career so far, splitting time between Cape Breton and Saint John en route to north of a point-and-a-half per game scoring clip with 50 points and 16 goals in 32 contests. Francis has been on quite a run dating back to the start of the 2019-20, pre-draft season, tormenting opposition with 122 points in 93 outings.
He found his high gear late in the 2020-21 season after a mid-season trade from Cape Breton to Saint John, notching a pair of hat-tricks, 10 goals and 29 points in 17 games with the Sea Dogs down the stretch.
"Cape Breton was in a little bit of a rebuild," he explained. "We had a younger team there. Coaches gave me lots of opportunities, I played a lot and grew my game a lot. Then I got traded to Saint John, came in with confidence, played with an older team and some really good players. I focused on my 200-foot game there, and it helped a lot."

The strong season on the ice made Francis hungrier to raise his ceiling. He's been in Calgary for nearly a month, and he plans to stick with the group of fellow prospects and current Flames through the end of the summer. It's a chance for him to learn from those who have already reached the mountain top as well as those still going through the climb.
For a young player such as Francis, it's invaluable experience.
"For me, (what sticks out) is how they carry themselves, their habits," he said. "No matter how tired they are or how hard the work on the ice was, they're in the gym every day. They take every drill 100 percent and don't cheat anything. They're great people as well. They've welcomed me since I got here. They make me comfortable. It's been a great learning experience so far."
At just 19 years of age, the 5-foot-9, 170-pounder is expected to return to the Maritimes for another go-round in the junior ranks. Some added seasoning could never hurt, but it's also the work he's putting in this summer that he hopes to show off when the lights come on and the games count.
He's relishing the return trip to his club in the QMJHL and continuing the upward swing toward becoming a professional player.

"I want to keep growing my game, keep producing for my team, become a more complete player," he said about the upcoming season. "We have a really strong team. Lots of NHL Draft prospects, lots of great players who are going to get drafted. We're a very complete team, so we'll try to win as many games as we can and play as deep into the playoffs as possible."
He's aware of the back-half success with the draft that the Flames have had, especially of late. It's impossible not to know about Andrew Mangiapane's ascent, Matthew Phillips and Adam Ruzicka's climb, and emerging prospects Emilio Pettersen and Dmitry Zavgorodniy.
If you can't be what you can't see, that's no concern for Francis - his eyes are wide open.
"When you see guys do it before, it helps you have that belief," he said. "I'm trying to focus on myself. Draft position is only one step.
"There's lots I need to do to be able to prove I can play pro hockey. I'm trying to get better every day. There's lots of later round picks that make the NHL, I'm just trying to be the next one for Calgary."