The Leafs had a vacancy since Wes Clark departed the role for a new job with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have a boss at the helm when it comes to the NHL Draft.
The club announced on Thursday that they hired 62-year-old amateur scout Mark Leach as their new director of amateur scouting.
Leach spent the last 11 years as an amateur scout with the Dallas Stars, where he has established a reputation as one of GM Jim Nill's top talent evaluators.
How valuable was he? When Nill departed the Detroit Red Wings as an assistant GM to general managers of the Stars in 2013, he took Leach with him. Leach spent 20 seasons with the Red Wings, the last 17 of those as an amateur scout, where he helped put together the clubs that won Stanley Cups in 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2008 before heading south.
The Stars's draft record over the last decade is widely regarded as one of the best across the NHL, which certainly made someone like Leach desirable to Toronto.
A cornerstone for helping the Stars undergo a rebuild in 2017, Leach helped the club draft the players that have shaped Dallas' consistency over the last several years and he should fit in on a Leafs team that doesn't always have a lot of draft picks (The Leafs don't have a first-round draft pick for next year).
Leach is one of many scouts who advised Dallas but certainly played a big role in shaping the club over the years and it will be interesting to see the types of players he drafts beginning in 2025.
Leach's hire comes just nine days after Wes Clark departed to the Maple Leafs to follow Pittsburgh Penguins president and former Toronto GM Kyle Dubas. Clark became that club's Vice President of Player Personnel.
