Guerin, MacFarland, Verbeek named finalists for 2026 Jim Gregory Award
Three men are being honored for their work in building impressive rosters this season.
On Tuesday, the NHL announced that the Minnesota Wild‘s Bill Guerin, Chris MacFarland of the Colorado Avalanche and the Anaheim Ducks‘ Pat Verbeek have been named finalists for the 2026 Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award.
Announcing the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award finalists... 🏆 #NHLAwards This award is presented annually to recognize the work of the top general manager in the NHL.
All three are first-time finalists for the award.
Guerin made headlines this season by taking a big swing and acquiring Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes in a blockbuster trade. It was a statement move that established the Wild as one of the top teams in the Western Conference. Guerin also made moves to add depth to the lineup ahead of the trade deadline, trading for Bobby Brink, Nick Foligno and Jeff Petry.
With the moves, Minnesota finished third in the ever-competitive Central Division. The team built off an impressive regular season, knocking the Dallas Stars out of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, marking the franchise’s first playoff series win in 11 years.
On top of his NHL team’s success, Guerin put together a Team USA roster that won gold at the Winter Olympics.
The team that Minnesota is going up against is MacFarland’s Avalanche. Colorado entered the playoffs after an impressive regular season. MacFarland added to a roster that already included the likes of Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog and Cale Makar, bringing in veterans Brent Burns and Brock Nelson during the offseason, as well as re-acquiring Nazem Kadri at the deadline. The combination of moves led to the Avs winning the franchise’s first Presidents’ Trophy since 2021.
MacFarland is looking to become the first Avs GM to win the award since Joe Sakic took home the trophy in 2021-22, the last time the team won the Stanley Cup.
The Ducks have been one of the feel-good stories of the 2025-26 season, and Verbeek had a lot to do with the team’s success. Along with the hiring of Joel Quenneville as head coach, Verbeek was at the helm when the team drafted young stars Beckett Sennecke and Leo Carlsson. while bringing veterans John Carlson, Mikael Granlund and Chris Kreider to give the rising squad some needed experience.
Anaheim finished third in the Pacific Division, clinching a playoff spot for the first time since 2018, upsetting the Edmonton Oilers in the first round.
Verebeek is vying to become the first Ducks GM to win the Jim Gregory since Bob Murray in 2013-14.