Dave Litman
The Toronto Maple Leafs’ coaching search was said to have started with conversations with about 55 people. Around 20 or so were interviewed in some form, and we finally had what was called a short list of four or five finalists this week. But no one, anywhere, seemed to have mentioned the name Jim Hiller as a candidate. In a surprise, seemingly out of the blue, Hiller has now been hired as the 41st head coach of the franchise.
Most will know Hiller as the recent head coach of the Los Angeles Kings, where he was fired after parts of three seasons this past March. He posted an impressive record there of 93-58-24, but couldn’t get the Kings out of the first round of the playoffs. Sound familiar, Leaf fans?
Of course, Toronto faithful will also remember that Hiller served as an assistant under Mike Babcock for four years in the previous decade. So this is a homecoming of sorts for the 57-year-old.
The hiring has taken many followers of the team off guard. There was so much talk of new GM John Chayka potentially going off the board with a fresh new look behind the bench. They spoke to options like NCAA champion David Carle, and recently retired NHL star Joe Pavelski. Other relatively exciting options, like Patrick Roy, were also on the short list of apparent finalists.
Leafs go with conventional choice Jim Hiller as new head coach
But the Leafs went with a conventional choice, which is a bit of a shock. In fact, how much different of a voice is Hiller from the recently-fired Craig Berube?
Chayka calls Hiller an “experienced coach with a strong understanding of what it takes to win in today’s NHL.”
One thing Hiller must have going for him coming in is his experience working with team captain Auston Matthews and star forward William Nylander. His time as an assistant from 2015 through 2019 saw him helping those two become the star players they are now. Of course, the more cynical of Leafs fans might look at that as a negative.
The hiring comes just a day after Chayka pulled off his first trade as the new GM, sending out Joseph Woll for a package that includes a young puck-moving defenseman and a decent pick in this month’s NHL Draft.
