Off-Ice Notes: MacFarland, Campbell, Julien
There was plenty revealed in today’s introductory press conference for the new President of Hockey Operations and General Manager for the Nashville Predators, Chris MacFarland. Although the Colorado Avalanche let MacFarland interview with the Predators and subsequently let him join the Central Division rival, they didn’t do so without a fight.
According to Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean, the Avalanche made multiple extension offers to MacFarland. Regardless, despite their attempts, Colorado was unwilling to give him a promotion, and that, along with the six-year term by Nashville, persuaded MacFarland to leave.
Additionally, Daugherty shared that a buyout was not needed for MacFarland. The NHL eliminated teams’ ability to send compensation to another team for hiring an executive, meaning the Avalanche allowed MacFarland to walk out of the final year remaining on his contract to take the role in Nashville.
Additional off-ice notes:
- After firing most of their coaching staff, the Vancouver Canucks are looking to build their bench from the ground up. The Canucks have already promoted Manny Malhotra from the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks to take over head coaching duties, but still need to fill in a couple of assistant coaching positions. To that end, Adam Kierszenblat of The Hockey News reported that Vancouver is interested in hiring Jessica Campbell for an assistant coaching position after she moved on from the Seattle Kraken a few weeks ago.
- According to a report out of Switzerland, longtime NHL coach Claude Julien has been hired by the NL’s ZSC Lions as the team’s next head coach. A former Stanley Cup champion with the Boston Bruins in 2011, Julien has spent the last few years as an assistant coach for the St. Louis Blues. Outside of his lengthy coaching career in North America, Julien briefly served as a senior advisor for the NL’s HC Ambrì-Piotta in the 2022-23 season.
Predators Hire Chris MacFarland As President Of Hockey Ops
According to a team announcement, the Nashville Predators have hired Chris MacFarland to be the organization’s new President of Hockey Operations & General Manager.
The Predators had been permitted to speak to MacFarland regarding a front office role, as initially reported by Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic and Elliotte Friedman. Friedman also added that Predators owner Bill Haslam met face-to-face with MacFarland last night. The question had come down to what role and title MacFarland would be offered with Nashville, but it seems they’re going to ‘hand the keys‘ to him, and they closed this quickly.
MacFarland is one of three finalists voted in contention for this season’s Jim Gregory award, which is given to the league’s best general manager. He has been with the Avalanche since the 2015-16 season, being promoted to general manager in Colorado after Joe Sakic was elevated to president of hockey operations shortly after the team’s 2022 Stanley Cup victory. That move came from the Avalanche’s yearning to keep MacFarland from interviewing for the Anaheim Ducks open position, later filled by Pat Verbeek. The 56-year-old had previously been with the Columbus Blue Jackets as a director of hockey operations and assistant general manager from 2000 up until the 2014-15 season. He spent the final two years in Columbus as the GM of the Springfield Falcons, the AHL affiliate at the time.
Sakic, according to Elliotte Friedman, will return to the GM role along with his current position as Avalanche President of Hockey Operations.
In a previous 32 Thoughts podcast, it was said that the Predators were being patient in their search and were waiting to ask to converse with a top-tier candidate. The target that Friedman said was logical for Nashville, based on the length of their search, was MacFarland. Before this development, Friedman had spoken on Nashville’s radio show DMase, Vingan & Daunic on 102.5 The Game, saying that the Predators are standing pat for someone who they’re waiting to speak with, whether it be a member of a front office under contract or someone who is running a team that remains in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
This was a development when the Avalanche were down three games to none in the Western Conference Finals against the Vegas Golden Knights. Friedman said that MacFarland wouldn’t likely depart from Colorado unless it was a ‘huge step up’, and added that Nashville might not offer that. He believed that the Predators would ask permission to talk to MacFarland in the event they’re eliminated.
Now that Colorado is in offseason mode, the Predators are taking a swing at grabbing a big front office name that has helped one franchise in the West. Nashville could use that help to get back to its Cup-contending ways that they haven’t seen for nearly a decade. The Predators had been looking for their next leader in the front office after it was announced mid-season that Barry Trotz was stepping down. Before that, they had David Poile, who served as the team’s GM from 1997 to 2023.
The Predators ended up sixth in the Central Division, missing the playoffs by four points in the 2025-26 season. With MacFarland stepping in, he begins his tenure with 12 draft picks in the upcoming 2026 NHL draft, starting with 10th overall and around $27MM in cap space to work with this upcoming offseason. Free agents the Predators will need to assess include the likes of forwards Erik Haula, Tyson Jost, and defenseman Kevin Gravel, rounded out by restricted free agent Justin Barron.
Despite missing the postseason for the past two campaigns, whoever inherits this team has a mix of youth talent among veteran stars in Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, and Juuse Saros that can be supported in their quest back into the dance while still under contract. The salary cap rising to $104MM benefits everyone, but after the Predators inked Jonathan Marchessault, Steven Stamkos, and Brady Skjei to major contracts, they need to capitalize on the window they have with these notable names.
Predators May Seek Permission To Interview Chris MacFarland For GM Vacancy
According to Elliotte Friedman on the 32 Thoughts podcast, the Nashville Predators are being patient in their general manager search and could be waiting to ask to converse with a top-tier candidate.
One target that Friedman said was logical for Nashville, based on the length of their search, is the current Colorado Avalanche GM, Chris MacFarland. Before this development, Friedman had joined Nashville’s radio show DMase, Vingan & Daunic on 102.5 The Game and said that the Predators are standing pat for someone who they’re waiting to speak with, whether it be a member of a front office under contract or someone who is running a team that remains in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Avalanche are now down three games to none in the Western Conference Finals to the Vegas Golden Knights, having lost 5-3 in a pivotal game three after leading 3-0 in the first period. According to Friedman, he said that MacFarland wouldn’t likely depart from Colorado unless it was a ‘huge step up’, adding that Nashville might not offer that. Although there isn’t an agreement near, he believes that the Predators would ask permission to talk to MacFarland in the event they’re eliminated.
MacFarland is one of three finalists voted in contention for the Jim Gregory award as the league’s best general manager. He has been with the Avalanche since the 2015-16 season, being promoted to general manager in Colorado after Joe Sakic was promoted to president of hockey operations shortly after the team’s 2022 Stanley Cup victory. The 56-year-old had previously been with the Columbus Blue Jackets as a director of hockey operations and assistant general manager from 2000 up until the 2014-15 season. He spent the final two years in Columbus as the GM of the Springfield Thunderbirds, the AHL affiliate at the time.
Earlier this season, Nashville had asked to speak with Carolina general manager Eric Tulsky, but was turned down. If a request was made while the Avalanche are in season, that request wouldn’t likely be accepted. Colorado’s current GM, to Friedman’s understanding, doesn’t have an expiring contract at season’s end as well and believes the organization values him highly.
Toronto and Vancouver have already hired their general managers this offseason, leaving Nashville as the lone team without a man at the wheel to guide hockey operations. The Predators have been looking for their next general manager after it was announced mid-season that Barry Trotz was stepping down. Before that, Nashville had David Poile, who served as the team’s GM from 1997 to 2023.
Nashville finished sixth in the Central Division, missing the playoffs by four points this season. The person who steps in will begin their tenure with 12 draft picks in the upcoming 2026 NHL draft, starting with 10th overall and $28MM in cap space to work with this upcoming offseason. Free agents the Predators will need to assess include the likes of forwards Erik Haula, Tyson Jost, and defenseman Kevin Gravel, rounded out by restricted free agent Justin Barron.
Despite missing the postseason for the past two campaigns, whoever inherits this team has a mix of youth talent among veteran stars in Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, and Juuse Saros that can be supported in their quest back into the dance while still under contract. The salary cap rising to $104MM benefits everyone, but after the Predators inked Jonathan Marchessault, Steven Stamkos, and Brady Skjei to major contracts, they need to capitalize on the window they have with these notable names.