The Toronto Maple Leafs announced on Thursday that the club has hired Mark Leach as their new director of amateur scouting. Leach replaces Wes Clark who previously oversaw amateur scouting for the past 6 seasons in Toronto.
A former Dallas Stars executive, the former St. Lawrence University standout worked closely with Jim Nill and Joe McDonnell, helping to turn Dallas into a perennial cup contender in the West. Prior to that he spent 20 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings with whom he won Stanley Cups in 1997, 1998, 2002, and 2008 as an amateur scout.
His predecessor, Wes Clark, followed former GM Kyle Dubas to Pittsburgh in the offseason to take on the role of VP of player personnel.
Leach has spent time in a variety of roles in the hockey world, from collegiate player, to assistant coach at Michigan Tech and Boston College, followed by decades spent as a scout. A large degree of his success down in Texas came from being able to find hidden gems in the middle to late rounds of the draft. Something that will be especially important in his new role, given the limited number of draft picks Toronto currently holds.
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