Chris MacFarland emotional about leaving Avalanche and joining Predators

Chris MacFarland is now the former GM of the Colorado Avalanche.

That’ll take a little bit of time to get used to.

MacFarland was officially introduced by the Nashville Predators on Wednesday as their new president of hockey operations and general manager.

He had spent the last 11 years in the Avs organization, including the past four seasons as GM of the team. But the Predators poached MacFarland on Tuesday, a process that happened very quickly. The Avalanche wished MacFarland well and named Joe Sakic their GM for the “foreseeable future.”

Nashville chairman and majority owner Bill Haslam took the podium alongside Chris MacFarland and made an interesting comment.

“I want to start by saying I’m really appreciative to the Avs, I think doing the right thing for somebody they had a great appreciation for. I’ll say up front, they didn’t let him go easily,” Haslam said. “They were very eager to keep Chris there, understandably.”

A report from Nashville says the Avalanche “made significant counter offers” to try to keep MacFarland, but the Predators offered him a six-year contract and a promotion.

MacFarland clearly got more money and a new title in Tennessee. It was a no-brainer for him to leave even if the Avalanche are Stanley Cup contenders while Nashville rebuilds.

Before he took any questions about the Predators, MacFarland made sure to thank a ton of people in Colorado.

“I have to start by thanking the Kroenke family. Stan, Mr. K as I call him, Josh, for 11 wonderful years. They treated me and my family incredibly well, they were great, great owners,” Chris MacFarland said. “I owe them a great deal for this opportunity.”

That’s when the emotions started to overwhelm MacFarland as clearly the last decade-plus in Denver meant a ton to him and his family.

“This is where it’s going to get tough for me,” MacFarland said. “Jared Bednar is one of the best, best people, great coach. He knows what I think of him.”

He went on to thank Avs assistant coaches, hockey folks, assistant GMs and of course Colorado’s stars on the ice.

“I want to thank the players, past and present, it’s not lost on me,” Chris MacFarland said before pausing while getting choked up. “But I love them.”

And the final thank you was saved for Sakic and his loved ones, who are dealing with a tough time of their own.

“To Joe, Deb and the entire Sakic family, I know you guys are going through a tough, heavy lifting spot with the passing of Claude Lemieux. I just want to give you my condolences and we’re thinking of you,” Chris MacFarland said.

Lemieux, Sakic’s teammate on the 1996 Stanley Cup champion Avs, passed away late last month. He died by suicide, a tragedy that has swept through the hockey community and beyond.

“Joe, you took a flier on me 11 years ago… Joe is a mentor and a lifelong friend. Massive for me and my career and I will miss him. Working with him was a dream opportunity for me and I owe him a massive debt of gratitude,” MacFarland continued.

It was a classy press conference from MacFarland, taking time to focus on the past before looking toward the future.

Colorado’s loss is Nashville’s gain, as he’ll look to turn that franchise around, while the Avalanche try to squeeze another championship out of a loaded core that Chris MacFarland helped build.

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