"Don't Tiptoe Into the Water" - MacFarland Talks Foundation, Evaluating as First Training Camp With Preds Begins

An NHL Draft, a Free Agency period, a few trades and signings - Chris MacFarland has accomplished plenty in less than four months on the job. 

And on Thursday morning at Ford Ice Center Bellevue, Nashville’s President of Hockey Operations and General Manager finally got his first look at the group he’s assembled. 

The Predators began the on-ice portion of their training camp with 55 participants spread out over three groups and ample opportunity for the GM and his staff to begin the evaluation process to eventually determine the final 23 who will make up the Opening Night roster. 

With a fresh NHL schedule format that takes the regular season from 82 to 84 games, the time allotted for training camp has shrunk. 

As opposed to the usual three weeks and six preseason games to make determinations on personnel, MacFarland and the Preds now have just 12 days for those decisions instead. 

And while the Predators certainly weren’t wasting time in previous years, there’s never been a camp quite as condensed as this. 

“It’s challenging,” MacFarland said of the time crunch now presented. “It’s going to come fast, and we're limited a little bit with the total number of [four preseason] games, and then we're further limited by the number of games that certain [veteran players] are allowed to play by rules. So, I think you know the evaluation process is going to be tighter. The games are obviously always very important, but I think practices are going to be equally as important, because a lot of the eyes on our players are new, mine included… We’re all equally excited to watch this group play and practice, and then get into the games [starting] on Sunday [in Tampa Bay]… It’s going to come fast and furious.”

Indeed it is, but that’s part of the fun. 

Seeing the roster on paper is one thing, but the chance for MacFarland to lay eyes on his full group Thursday was a welcomed sight. 

So, what exactly is the GM looking for when watching his club in camp? 

“You want to see the foundation of how we're going to play and our structure and making sure that our young pros, our rookies are getting dialed in with good habits and that sort of thing,” MacFarland said. “And then the competitive evaluations in the four [preseason] games will be really important for me and the hockey staff. You hope that it’s hard decisions to get down to the final 23. I think we all know that there's certain players that are going to be on the team, right? There's a cache in the bank. There's trust. They've been in the League for a long time and been good players. But there are spots to be earned here, and I think for us the evaluations are daily with those guys with those spots, and they're also being measured against what might be available from other teams over the next 10 days or two weeks. So, it's a really important time of the year for me, for our staff.”

As far as those spots, MacFarland said Thursday morning there are “realistically four to five” to be earned. While he can’t predict what will happen over the next two weeks - not only with his club, but across the rest of the League as well - that competition will only ratchet up as the days move along, especially with Nashville’s first preseason game set for Sunday evening in Tampa Bay. 

While game action is always the best way to evaluate, these camp practices, MacFarland said, will also carry great importance, especially for young players trying to prove they deserve a shot. 

MacFarland wants skaters like Aiden Fink, Cole O’Hara, Joakim Kemell, Brady Martin, Reid Schaefer, Vitali Pinchuk, Ryan Ufko, Tanner Molendyk and other young hopefuls to learn from the veterans in the locker room, but the GM also had a simple message as camp began. 

“Ask questions, and try to figure things out, and be a good pro, and that sort of thing - but then the flip side of that coin for me is don't tiptoe into the water,” MacFarland said of the rookies. “You’re here for a reason - let’s see it… You never know when that opportunity to grab a role or to earn trust or to announce yourself is going to come in your career. So, my messaging to some of them is do what you do that got you here. You guys are unicorns, right? You’re professional hockey players. I put immense value and respect on that. What they do is not easy to do. They’re all here for a reason, so show it… Whatever it is [you do best], announce it loudly, show us, do it daily, and then in the games, put it on display. That's what we're looking for.”

Time will tell who makes that announcement best, and MacFarland can’t wait to see who does. 

And while he knows there probably won’t be any groundbreaking revelations throughout the rest of the month, there is still plenty to take from what’s ahead as the promise of a fresh season inches ever closer. 

“We're not going to make massive decisions based on 10 days of hockey,” MacFarland said. “For established veteran guys, they know what training camp is. They’ve got to get their bodies and their minds sharp and that sort of thing, and I totally get it. I’ve been around long enough to know what camp looks like. But for other guys that are trying to become NHL players or trying to take a step in their career or earn a bigger role, for me it's about the habits. For me it's about, what do the Predators want to be? It's about building our identity. What are we going to do that should start now? That competitiveness, those dialed-in defensive details, has to start in training camp. So, that's what I'm hoping we'll see.”