Read the complete write-up of Pavel Francouz net worth, age, wife, children, height, family, parents, trade, contract, salary, ice hockey teams as well as other information you need to know.
Introduction
Pavel Francouz is a Czech professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing with the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL). On 26 April 2018, Francouz was slated to make his fifth tournament appearance with the Czech Republic after he was selected for the 2018 World Championships.
Early life
| Name | Pavel Francouz |
| Net Worth | $7 million |
| Occupation | Ice hockey player |
| Height | 1.83m |
| Age | 32 years |
Pavel Francouz was born on June 3, 1990 (age 32 years) in Plzeň of then Czechoslovakia. When he first started playing hockey, Francouz was a defenseman. His first language is Czech, but he also gained English and Russian fluency in high school. He holds a pilot license, which he uses throughout the off-season.
Career
Career
Pavel Francouz first played at the junior level within the ranks of his hometown club, HC Plzeň. As a 15-year-old he backstopped the club’s under-18 team in the 2005–06 season posting sub 2.00 GAA. In the following 2006–07 season he led the league with 25 wins. In the 2007–08 season, Francouz assumed the starting goaltender position at the highest junior level in the Czech Republic in the under-20 league.
Francouz recorded 25 wins in 37 games to lead the club into the post-season. Having signed a first-team contract with HC Plzeň, Francouz made his professional debut in the Czech Extraliga during the 2008–09 season. In 15 games he collected 6 wins with a solid SV% of .922. At the under-20 level, he finished the season with the League’s best statistics in all categories.
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He spent the next 2009–10 season continuing his development, appearing in 8 Extraliga games, while also playing in the Czech 1. Liga on loan to HC Tabor and SK Horácká Slavia Třebíč. On 13 May 2010, in order to earn more experience professionally, Francouz left Plzeň to sign a contract with HC Slovan Ústečtí Lvi of the Czech 1. Liga. In the 2010–11 season, he was initially loaned to former 1. Liga club SK Horácká before splitting the year in making an impact with his new club Ústečtí Lvi, posting the best GAA and SV% in the League and leading Slovan Ústečtí Lvi to the championship.
Francouz’s strong play was rewarded as he was loaned and trained with HC Oceláři Třinec during his second season with Ústečtí in 2011–12. He made in just one appearance with Třinec, allowing 4 goals before he was replaced in the second intermission.
On 9 May 2012, Pavel Francouz secured a place in the Extraliga agreeing to a contract with HC Litvínov beginning from the 2012–13 season. He instantly assumed Litvínov’s starting role and in 46 games repaid the club by registering the most league wins with 26 and earning recognition as the Extraliga’s Best Goaltender.
In the 2014–15 season, Francouz through 46 games cemented his status as the best Goaltender in the Czech Republic, leading the league in most statistical categories, to earn the MVP award of both the regular season and playoffs as Litvínov claimed the Championship.
Traktor Chelyabinsk
After three years in Litvínov, Francouz opted to leave as a free agent and continue his career in Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) by agreeing to a three-year contract with a Russian outfit, Traktor Chelyabinsk on 30 April 2015. In his first season with Traktor in 2015–16, Francouz assumed backup duties to Vasili Demchenko. He posted a .924 save percentage despite collecting just 3 wins in 18 games as Chelyab insk missed the post-season.
In the following 2016–17 season, Francouz shared the starting role with Demchenko after initially earning KHL player of the week honors (30 October). He continued his strong play earning a selection to the 2017 All-Star Game. In 30 games with Traktor, Francouz accumulated 14 wins and finished the year with the KHL’s best SVS% (.953).
Despite lucrative contract offers and interest, Francouz was not released from the final year of his contract and remained in Traktor for the 2017–18 season. He again shared starting duties and appeared in a season-high 35 games for 15 wins and for the second consecutive season led the league in SVS%. Selected to backstop the club in the post-season, and led Traktor to the Conference Finals before suffering a series defeat to eventual Champions Ak Bars Kazan.
Colorado Avalanche
Pavel Francouz signed a one-year, one-way deal of $690,000 with the Colorado Avalanche on May 2, 2018. After attending his first training camp with the Avalanche, Francouz was assigned to begin his first North American season in 2018–19 with American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. In transitioning to the smaller rink size, Francouz quickly adapted and registered 6 wins through his first 7 games with the Eagles, earning the starting role.
Francouz received his first recall to the Avalanche on 22 December 2019 and immediately made his NHL debut, relieving Philipp Grubauer in a defeat against the Arizona Coyotes. Returning to the Eagles, Francouz was later recalled for a second time and made a second consecutive appearance in relief to step in against the San Jose Sharks on 1 January 2019. He returned to the AHL and was named in the 2019 AHL All-Star Classic before missing due to injury.
He led the Eagles to the post-season with a 27–17–3 record, finishing third in league wins and leading the AHL in saves. In the playoffs, Francouz started all four contests with the Eagles posting 1 win, unable to help advance past the first-round. Joining the Avalanche’s extended squad for their post-season run, Francouz was later re-signed to a one-year, $950,000 contract extension on 25 May 2019.
With the departure of longtime Avalanche goaltender Semyon Varlamov in the off-season, Francouz assumed the backup duties for Colorado leading into the 2019–20 season. He became the first Avalanche goaltender since Vitali Kolesnik in 2005, to collect his first win in his first NHL, backstopping a 3–2 overtime victory over the Arizona Coyotes on 12 October 2019. Assuming a higher workload through injuries to Grubauer, Francouz established himself through November and December, posting a 9–0–1 record over 12 games, the longest undefeated streak since Varlamov in 2014.
In the midst of starting a career-high 7 straight games, on 21 February 2020, Francouz recorded his first NHL shutout and that same day the Avalanche signed him to a two-year, $4 million extension. He finished the regular season, leading the Avalanche with 21 wins and finishing in the league top ten in both save percentage and goals against.
With the NHL returning for the playoffs after the COVID-19 pandemic enforced hiatus, Francouz made his post-season debut in the Western Conference seeding round, becoming the first goaltender in Franchise history to record a shutout in his first start after a 4–0 victory over the Dallas Stars on 5 August 2020. Helping Colorado advance to the second-round, Francouz was drawn into action after a season-ending injury to Philipp Grubauer in the opening series game on 22 August 2020. Hampered by injury himself, Francouz collected 3 defeats through four games against the Stars before he was ruled out through games 5-7 of the series loss.
In the pandemic delayed 2020–21 season, Pavel Francouz having returned from double-knee surgery backed up Grubauer for the opening two games of the campaign before the Avalanche announced that Francouz would be placed on the long-term injured reserve list to have season-ending double hip surgery on 4 February 2021.
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Pavel Francouz suffered another setback after injuring his ankle in his first pre-season game for the 2021–22 season on 5 October 2021. Ruled out for the opening two months of the season, Francouz was sent on a conditioning loan in a return to the Colorado Eagles of the AHL. Collecting 3 wins through 4 games, Francouz returned to the Avalanche and made his first NHL appearance in over a year in a 5–2 defeat to the Nashville Predators on 16 December 2021. Returning to action after testing positive for COVID and a team-wide shut down, Francouz quickly regained his level of play and after recording 10 wins through his first 14 games, Francouz opted to forgo free agency to sign another two-year, $4 million extensions with the Avalanche on 12 March 2022.
Francouz was summoned into action during the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs after an eye injury to starter Darcy Kuemper during their Round 1 matchup against the Nashville Predators and would help the Avalanche win the last two games of the series in a sweep. He would later be named the starter for Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals against the Edmonton Oilers after a setback from Kuemper from his original eye injury. Francouz would record his first career postseason shutout, stopping all 24 shots he faced.
International career
Pavel Francouz was first introduced to the International stage at the Junior level, competing for the Czech Republic at the Division I 2008 World U18 Championships in Kazan, Russia. As the team’s backup, he appeared in one game, helping the Czech Republic place first in Group A and return to the Top Division for the following year. He next featured for the Czechs at the 2010 World Junior Championship.
Francouz made his senior debut with the Czech Republic, competing in the 2013 World Championship. He made two relief appearances for the Czechs in a 7th-place finish. He was named to the roster of the 2014 World Championships, however, failed to feature in a game before making his first full start at the 2016 World Championships.
In the 2017 World Championships, he shared netminding duties with Petr Mrázek, posting a 3–1 record with 1.49 goals against and 9.10 save percentage. As an established member of the national team, Francouz was next selected to participate at the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, Korea. As the first choice, Francouz appeared in every game for the Czech Republic, posting a 4–2 record in helping reach the semi-finals before losing to Russia. He was unable to prevent the Czechs suffer a 4–6 defeat in the bronze medal game against Canada on 24 February 2018.
Wife
Pavel Francouz is married to Carolina Francouz, they had their wedding in Czech. His wife is a private person and they are living a happy life with each other without facing any problems, tension and misunderstanding. The couple welcomed their first child in April 2019. As of 2022, Francouz and his wife live partly in the United States and Czech. He stands at an appealing height and has a good bodyweight that suits his personality.
Pavel Francouz net worth
How much is Pavel Francouz worth? Pavel Francouz net worth is estimated at around $7 million. His main source of income is from his career as an ice hockey player. Francouz salary and other earnings are over $3 million annually. His successful career has earned him some luxurious lifestyles and some fancy car trips. He is one of the richest and influential ice hockey players in the Czech.