Predators Hire Chris MacFarland as President of Hockey Operations and General Manager - NHL.com

Nashville, Tenn. (June 2, 2026) – Nashville Predators Chairman and Majority Owner Bill Haslam announced today that Chris MacFarland has been hired as President of Hockey Operations/General Manager. MacFarland replaces Barry Trotz, who transitions into an advisory role within the organization after announcing in February his intention to retire as general manager once his successor was identified. MacFarland becomes the third GM in Predators history and the second to hold the president of hockey operations title.

“We could not be more pleased that Chris has elected to join the Predators organization and lead our hockey operations group,” Haslam said. “We conducted an exhaustive search and were able to meet with several very qualified and impressive candidates, but all along, we were hopeful to interview Chris. He turned out to be a perfect fit for us – just what we were looking for to lead our organization moving forward.

“I’d like to thank the Colorado Avalanche, the Kroenke family and Joe Sakic for giving Chris permission to talk with us and for supporting his desire to make this move. I’d also like to thank the members of our search committee, those who expressed interest in joining the Predators in this role, and especially Barry Trotz for his work in positioning Chris for success. We appreciate everyone’s time and effort in this endeavor.”

MacFarland, 56 (3/28/70), joins the Predators organization after spending the previous 11 seasons with the Colorado Avalanche, including the past four as general manager. He worked with Sakic, the Avalanche’s president of hockey operations and Hockey Hall of Famer, to build the 2022 Stanley Cup championship team; Colorado has also made the playoffs in nine straight campaigns – tied for the longest active streak in the NHL – reaching the Western Conference Final this postseason. During his four-season tenure as Avalanche GM, which began in July 2022, Colorado won the Presidents’ Trophy in 2025-26, earned two Central Division titles, led the NHL in wins (205), scored the second-most goals per game (3.50) and allowed the fourth-fewest goals-against per game (2.75).

“My wife Chandra and I, together with our children, are grateful to Bill and Crissy Haslam and the entire Nashville Predators family for this opportunity,” MacFarland said. “We also thank everyone at the Avalanche, including Joe Sakic and the Kroenke family, for their support in pursuing this position with the Predators; I believe Nashville will be a great fit for me.

“I know this is a proud organization with a solid track record of putting together teams that the fans of Smashville support wholeheartedly. My goal here is to build a winner, working with Bill Haslam, Sean Henry and our hockey operations staff and players to put a team on the ice that will compete for the Stanley Cup. I am excited about our future.”

MacFarland earned his first career nod as a finalist for the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award on May 12 after assembling an Avalanche squad that, in 2025-26, led the NHL in points with a franchise-record 121 (55-16-11 record) and reached the Western Conference Final. Building around a core featuring 2024 Hart Trophy winner Nathan MacKinnon and two-time Norris Trophy recipient Cale Makar, he signed veteran defenseman Brent Burns in the offseason and inked center Brock Nelson to a three-year contract after acquiring him at the trade deadline the previous campaign. MacFarland then added to his roster, landing forwards Nazem Kadri and Nicolas Roy and defensemen Brett Kulak and Nick Blankenburg prior to the 2026 trade deadline. Consistently seeking to add to the organization’s depth at all positions, the 2025-26 version of the Avalanche saw 15 different players record at least 20 points – tied for the most among all NHL teams – and 11 different skaters score at least 10 goals.