STAFF - Francisco Hockey

Jon Francisco

Founder / Owner

Jon grew up in Hermantown, Minnesota and has over 35 years of hockey experience. He played baseball, football, golf, soccer and hockey growing up. After playing Minnesota High School hockey for Hermantown, Jon moved on to play for the University of Minnesota-Duluth for four seasons. Following college, he played in the AHL, ECHL and UHL for 8 seasons. Jon has been coaching for over 15 years in various capacities and in multiple sports around the country. He has ran an on-ice and off-ice training facility, hockey combines, hockey camps as well as mentor players ranging from the youth level through the pro level. He has a passion for the game and to pass his knowledge on to the next generation of athletes.

Jon believes that fundamentals are the building blocks of any sport. Once those are established, you can then continue to push the envelope of a players potential. The game has changed since he played and believes if you're not willing to change with the times, understand the trends and the direction of the game, you are just teaching in the past. Jon fosters an environment of teaching, making mistakes, learning from those mistakes, hard work and having fun. He enjoys working with athletes, especially when the "light bulb" turns on.

Learn more about Jon and his story on this podcast from the Youth Hockey Hub.

Max Hayes

Max was born and raised in Anoka, Minnesota where he began skating at the age of 2. Throughout his youth and high school years, he spent his time playing competitive hockey, football, baseball and tennis as part of the MSHSL. Following his high school graduation, Max attended University of Minnesota-Duluth. His is on track to graduate this spring with a degree in Business and Marketing. Max has spent the last two years as Head Coach for the Hermantown PeeWee "A" team and was hired to run skills sessions for the Mite/Bantam teams throughout the summer months. In addition, Max was the Head Coach of the Northland Yetis AAA Team in the summer of 2022.

Since hanging up his skates as a player, Max has found passion in teaching and growing the game of hockey. Max brings high energy to the ice, as well as a drive to help develop players into the best athlete they can be. He is proud of his ability to build good rapport with these young skaters and finds deep satisfaction in helping them grow. Max is a continuous "student of the game" and consistently seeks new ways to improve the sport. Most importantly, Max emphasizes having FUN while playing and developing long lasting skills both on and off the ice.