Predators hire Chris MacFarland as GM and president of hockey operations
The Nashville Predators‘ long-running search to find a new head of their hockey operations department has finally reached a conclusion.
The club has officially announced that Chris MacFarland has been hired as the GM and president of hockey operations.
“We could not be more pleased that Chris has elected to join the Predators organization and lead our hockey operations group,” Predators majority owner Bill 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.
MacFarland took over a strong Colorado Avalanche team coming off a Stanley Cup championship, and he made several bold choices that have kept the team among the NHL’s elite.
Notably, in January 2025, he traded Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Martin Necas, Jack Drury and draft picks. Later that spring, he acquired Brock Nelson from the New York Islanders at the deadline, and he secured a pair of top-six forwards for the long haul by working out extensions with both Necas and Nelson.
MacFarland’s new-look Avs were the best team in the NHL in the regular season, cruising to the Presidents’ Trophy with a record of 55-16-11 after a record-breaking first half of the year gave way to a merely very good second half.
Colorado then cruised through the first two rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, sweeping the Los Angeles Kings and bouncing the Minnesota Wild in five, before suffering a shocking sweep in the Western Conference Final at the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights.
As for the Predators, the job came open when outgoing general manager Barry Trotz announced his intent to step away from the role in January following a second consecutive disappointing year under his leadership.
Nashville finished four points back of a weak Western Conference wild card cut line with a 38-34-10 record, and in 2024-25, they went 30-44-8 after Trotz went on a massive free agent spending spree that saw him land veterans Steven Stamkos, Brady Skjei and Jonathan Marchessault.
