- The Nashville Predators have hired Derek MacKenzie as an assistant coach, the team said this morning. MacKenzie had previously worked with new Predators head coach Andrew Brunette for a three-year period with the Florida Panthers, concluding with a President’s Trophy win in 2021-22 with Brunette as head coach. MacKenzie had spent the 2022-23 campaign as head coach of the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves after the Panthers revamped their coaching staff last offseason, where he guided prospects such as forward Quentin Musty (who could be available with Nashville’s first-round selections) to high-end seasons.