Jim Hiller Coach Leads Maple Leafs as 41st Hire
Jim Hiller coach is back in Toronto, and the Maple Leafs have hired him as their head coach. He becomes the 41st head coach in franchise history, a number that reaches back to the club’s founding in 1917.
Toronto Maple Leafs and Jim Hiller
The move puts Hiller at the center of a team he already knows well. He spent four seasons as an assistant coach with the Maple Leafs from 2015-16 to 2018-19, and Toronto qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs on three occasions during that stretch.
Maple Leafs general manager John Chayka described Hiller as an experienced coach with a strong understanding of what it takes to win in today’s NHL. Chayka also said he connects well with players and brings a clear approach behind the bench, adding that the club believes he is the right person to lead the team and help it reach its goals.
Jim Hiller Kings Record
Hiller’s most recent head-coaching stop came with the Los Angeles Kings, where he served from 2023-24 through 2025-26. In 175 games, he produced a 93-58-24 record and a.600 win percentage. He also spent two seasons as an assistant coach in Los Angeles before that, from 2022-23 to 2023-24.
Before his NHL coaching run in Toronto, New York, and Los Angeles, Hiller spent 11 seasons coaching junior hockey in Canada across the Western Hockey League and British Columbia Hockey League. His five-year stint with the Tri-City Americans from 2009-10 to 2013-14 brought two division titles and five consecutive playoff appearances, and his 2011-12 team finished 50-18-2-2 with 104 points.
Hiller Career Path
Hiller’s résumé also includes a gold medal with Canada at the 2010 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, where he worked as an assistant coach. He was named the Canadian Hockey League Coach of the Year and Western Hockey League Coach of the Year in 2011-12.
As a player, he was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the 10th round, 207th overall, of the 1989 NHL Draft. He played 63 career NHL games with Los Angeles and recorded 20 points, including eight goals and 12 assists.
For Toronto, the hire hands the bench to a coach with previous ties to the organization and a recent head-coaching record that includes 175 NHL games. Hiller said he is incredibly excited to return to Toronto and lead the Maple Leafs, and he called the club a special organization with great players, passionate fans and high expectations.
