Avalanche GM Chris MacFarland leaves organization for Nashville Predators, Joe Sakic takes over in interim

Chris MacFarland is headed to a division rival.

The Nashville Predators on Tuesday announced they have hired MacFarland to be their president of hockey operations and general manager. MacFarland leaves the Avalanche after being the general manager for the past four seasons. In the immediate, Joe Sakic will resume general manager duties for the Avalanche.

“We would like to thank Chris for all he did for the Avalanche organization. Chris was instrumental in our success over the last decade and a key part of our 2022 Stanley Cup championship. This was an opportunity for him to take on a bigger role with the Predators while being closer to his family. We wish him and his family all the best in Nashville,” Kroenke Sports & Entertainment Vice Chairman Josh Kroenke said in a statement.

“(Avalanche President) Joe Sakic will resume the general manager duties for the foreseeable future, including through this month’s draft and the start of the league year. In Joe’s previous stint as GM, he helped build the current roster and led us to the 2022 Stanley Cup. We are confident in Joe’s leadership and that we will continue to build upon our recent success as we seek to bring another Cup back to Colorado.”

Sakic is scheduled to speak to media next week.

MacFarland joined the Avalanche in 2015 and immediately began working hand-in-hand with Sakic to rebuild the franchise. He played a key role in helping build the 2022 Stanley Cup-winning team. MacFarland is one of three finalists for the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year award.

While Sakic will take over MacFarland’s duties in the iterim, the wording of the press release makes it sound like that will not be a long-term solution. That means the Avalanche will have to look for a new general manager at some point. There are a few internal options in the organization already.

Assistant general manager Kevin McDonald has worked with the Avalanche since 2022 and has been the general manager for the Colorado Eagles, who are still playing in the American Hockey League playoffs. The Avalanche also have Andrew Wilson, who joined the team two years ago as an assistant general manager from the NHL league offices and is a salary cap expert.

There’s also Andrew Cogliano, who has spent the past two seasons as a special assistant to the general manager since retiring from playing. He attends every game with MacFarland and McDonald.