Jim Hiller and then-Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock watch together from the bench in a game against the Coyotes in 2019.Christian Petersen/Getty Images
For a man long associated with the Los Angeles Kings – as both player and head coach – Jim Hiller has also been on hand to witness some of the greatest moments in recent Toronto Maple Leafs history.
He was on the Detroit Red Wings bench in Joe Louis Arena when Nikolai Borschevsky tipped home a Game 7 overtime series winner to send the Leafs on their way to the 1993 conference final. And he was in the building 23 years later as a member of Mike Babcock’s Toronto coaching staff when the Leafs took Auston Matthews first overall in the NHL draft.
So it seems somewhat fitting that his journey through the sport brought him back to Toronto on Wednesday, as the 57-year-old Port Alberni, B.C., native was officially installed as the 41st head coach in the franchise’s long history.
Indeed, one of his lasting memories of the Leafs as an assistant coach involved the late architect of that 1993 team, Cliff Fletcher. Going to Halifax for his first training camp with the team, Hiller said he went out for a long dinner with Fletcher and fellow assistant D.J. Smith.
“Just listening to Cliff share himself with us, tell stories, get to see the person, the humility and the caring, and the pride he had in the Leafs is a night again we reference, and we’ll never forget,” he said.
“I think he really embodies what we’re all trying to do and be here with the Leafs.”
What he is trying to do is restore some semblance of pride to the Maple Leafs after the team experienced a franchise-record 30-point year-over-year decline from its 108-point haul that accompanied a division title in 2024-25.
Taking over the reins of a team that had grown weary of playing Craig Berube’s north-south style, Hiller’s challenge is to get the team back to the playoffs and reinvigorate the franchise’s biggest star. Matthews had his worst season statistically, putting up just 53 points in an injury-riddled campaign.
While he isn’t wedded to a strict coaching philosophy, Hiller was criticized in Los Angeles at times for a defensive 1-3-1 neutral-zone trapping system. That system, however, led to his team finishing second overall in goals against in his one full season behind the Kings bench, as he led the team to a franchise-record 105 points.
But his two trips to the playoffs in Los Angeles were ended by a Connor McDavid-powered Edmonton team on its way to the final both times.
The Maple Leafs finished last season ranked 31st in goals against.
“I can tell you one thing – the Leafs are going to be much better defensively under Jim Hiller,” said analyst and former NHL goaltender Martin Biron on TSN.
Hiller was an assistant under Mike Babcock until 2019, when he left to join the staff of the New York Islanders.Kevin Sousa/Getty Images
In his introductory Zoom call with the media, one of Hiller’s points of emphasis was on improving the spirit of the team, something that from the outside seemed sorely lacking at times last year.
“I believe the biggest impact the coach can have is guiding the spirit of the team,” he said. “The foundation of any team is how the spirit strengthens and grows during a season, and to me, everybody who’s involved and can touch the team in certain ways has some input and some influence on how that grows.”
The other was simply skating. But skating fast.
“I believe skating is the first chain in competing,” he said. “And so when you get on the ice and you’re skating, and when I say skating, it’s up, it’s back, it’s there, it’s quick, it’s stopped, it’s as quick and hard as you can do things.”
Maple Leafs general manager John Chayka said the hiring of Hiller was the conclusion of an exhaustive search, with the team spending time with “everyone from proven Stanley Cup winners that have been in the league for a long time and been with multiple organizations to players that are recently retired to European candidates, major junior, college and everything in between.”
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He refused to be drawn on whether former Vegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy was one of the 25 interviewed. Other names, such as former Dallas forward Joe Pavelski and former New York Islanders head coach Patrick Roy, had been mentioned in connection with the Toronto vacancy.
One area where Chayka and Hiller are in lock step is hockey analytics. Both co-founded analytics companies, with Hiller starting video analysis company TruPerformance alongside former NHLer Brad Werenka while he was head coach of the WHL’s Tri-City Americans.
“In my experiences, they just help you have better discussions and point you in better directions,” he said. “I think that’s something that’s really easier for us to communicate about.”
The next steps for Hiller will be rounding out a coaching staff (he has yet to communicate with the assistants still on staff), reaching out to players and getting ready for the draft, where, just like in 2016, the Leafs hold the No. 1 pick.
“It’s hard to get the generational talent players on your roster,” he said. “Any time you’re picking at one, you got a great chance of doing that.”