Colorado Avalanche Promotes Joe Sakic to President of Hockey Operations, Chris MacFarland to GM
The Colorado Avalanche are reorganizing their main office after winning the Stanley Cup.
Executive Vice President / General Manager Joe Sakic was named the team’s hockey executive chairman, clearing the way for assistant GM Chris MacFarland to take on the fifth general manager position in the Colorado team’s history.
MacFarland just finished his seventh season as Avalanche’s assistant GM.
Sakic took over as general manager in September 2014. The Avalanche’s former Hockey Hall and star center oversaw a rebuild in which Colorado drafted the security force. Cale Makar and right wing Mikko Rantanen while making bold trades for players, such as hub Nazem Kadri and protector Devon Toews. Avalanche made it to the knockout stages for four consecutive seasons before breaking through with their 2022 Stanley Cup title before Tampa Bay Lightning.
Sakic was named the recipient of the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award from 2021 to 22 at last week’s NHL draft in Montreal.
“Joe is amazing. I think sometimes in professional sports it goes through some cycles. The hardest thing is to stay in good shape,” Avalanche owner Stan Kroenke said after won the Cup in Tampa, Florida, last month. .
The move upstairs keeps MacFarland with Avalanche. The 52-year-old has been pursued by a number of teams looking to hire a general manager over the past few seasons, with Avalanche refusing to grant him permission to interview for jobs like openings in San Jose.
MacFarland is a member of Columbus blue jacket‘hockey operations department for 16 years. He has assisted Sakic in all hockey-related matters and is credited with helping create the Cup-winning Avalanche team, having joined the team under Sakic in May 2015.
MacFarland will be on the job right away: Colorado has only 16 players under contract for next season, including eight strikers. In addition, negotiations are expected to intensify with the superstar Nathan MacKinnonwho has one more year left as an unrestricted freelance agent.
