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Jim Hiller with the Los Angeles Kings.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have found sustained success over the past decade, and while 2025/26 was anything but, they’ve got an opportunity to turn things around quickly after missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs entirely.

With the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, a new General Manager and the team waiting to hire a new Head Coach, there’s going to be plenty of high profile change in Toronto, and with a very talented roster, the expectation is that they can bounce back quickly. According to Pierre LeBrun, the Head Coach search was expansive, with the team interviewing more than 30 candidates before landing on their choice, and on Wednesday, that choice was made official ahead of the 2026 NHL Draft.

Jim Hiller Named as the new Toronto Maple Leafs Head Coach

GettyJim Hiller with the Los Angeles Kings.

After speculation surrounding every available Head Coach, and almost every available assistant coach in hockey, the Maple Leafs made their decision on Wednesday, officially naming former Los Angeles Kings Head Coach Jim Hiller as the new Head Coach in Toronto.

Hiller is a familiar face to those in Toronto, as he served as an assistant in Toronto under Mike Babcock between 2015 and 2019, and according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, that familiarity may have won him the job in the end.

Jim Hiller Brings Limited Head Coach Experience to Toronto

While Hiller isn’t a name that many expected to be the new Head Coach in Toronto, it’s one that makes sense for John Chayka as the new General Manager, as he’s been a Head Coach in the NHL for the past three seasons, combined with the experience in Toronto already.

Over the past three seasons, Hiller posted a record of 98-53-24 with the Los Angeles Kings, and after finishing third and second in the Pacific Division, he was fired before he could see out his third season with the organization. In that time however, the Kings failed to make much of an impact in the post-season, as they were swiftly eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers in both of Hiller’s seasons, failing to make it past round one of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

That’s a similar problem to what the Maple Leafs have experienced in recent years, but with Auston Matthews, William Nylander and (presumably) Gavin McKenna on this current roster, he’s got talent like he never had with the Kings. Still, this is a hire that many are going to question due to Hiller’s lack of success in LA and the caliber of coach that remained available before they made this hire, but now, they’ve made it, as they believe he’s the coach that can help lead them to success with this core group.

Ultimately, there were other, potentially better coaches out there, but the Maple Leafs wanted to get things done before the 2026 NHL Draft and more off-season decisions came their way, and while this will bring criticism to the organization, they’ve made their choice, and after an extensive search, they were definitely thorough before landing on Hiller.