Before Chris MacFarland moved forward with his new duties and his task of turning around a franchise, he took a moment to look back. The president of hockey operations/general manager of the Nashville Predators thanked his old boss, Joe Sakic, on Wednesday at his introductory news conference and his old team, the Colorado Avalanche, for giving him a chance.Then, on to his next assignment: Building the Predators, a team that’s missed the postseason in three of the past four seasons, into a perennial Cup contender, much like his old team. Nashville just might be caught at the moment in the precarious spot MacFarland referred to as the “mushy middle” — a place that’s not bad enough for a top draft pick but not quite elite enough to challenge for a title.The answer that Predators chairman and majority owner Bill Haslam gave MacFarland, though, about their commitment to winning is precisely the reason MacFarland jumped at the chance to join the organization.
“Because it was going to take a hell of an opportunity and situation to get me to think about leaving Colorado,” said MacFarland, who spent 11 seasons with the Avalanche, including the past four as the GM. “I said, ‘Mr. Haslam, is the goal here to make the playoffs, make the wild card, feel good about that and high-five each other? Or is the goal here to build a team that can compete and try to bring a Stanley Cup to Broadway?’
