The Maple Leafs announced today that Mark Leach, a long-time scout of the Dallas Stars and Detroit Red Wings, has filled the vacant Director of Amateur Scouting position.
The Leafs did not wait long to find a replacement for Wes Clark, who departed to join long-time colleague Kyle Dubas with the Pittsburgh Penguins last week. Clark ran the previous three drafts — the Fraser Minten, Easton Cowan, and Ben Danford drafts — for the Maple Leafs after taking over from John Lilley prior to the 2021-22 season.
Leach spent the last 11 seasons with the Dallas Stars, working directly with Director of Amateur Scouting Joe McDonnell and general manager Jim Nill. Brother of Boston Bruins assistant coach Jay Leach, Mark previously worked with Nill in the Detroit Red Wings organization as an amateur scout for 20 seasons. The club won four Stanley Cups — in 1997, 1998, 2002, and 2008 — during this time as Leach was part of a highly-regarded drafting and development program in the Wings’ dynasty years. That also means former Red Wing Brendan Shanahan is familiar with Leach’s history and resume.
Mark Leach has been a part of the Dallas scouting team that pulled such players as:
• Wyatt Johnston 23rd
• Logan Stankoven 47th
• Jason Robertson 39th
• Thomas Harley 18th
• Roope Hintz 49thYeah, I'd say that's a decent hire for TO https://t.co/ZFJm0uISe2
— Cam Robinson (@Hockey_Robinson) July 18, 2024
Draft selections are generally decided by-committee, and it can be difficult/misleading to assign responsibility for a given pick to an individual scout on a collaborative staff. However, a current member of the Leafs‘ scouting operation emphasized to MLHS today that Leach has a “really good scouting background,” referring to Leach’s long history with the Stars and Red Wings.
It’s well-documented that Dallas has been among the best value scouting teams in the NHL over the past decade, and in speaking with several people familiar with Leach’s influence at the Stars’ draft table, it’s clear he was instrumental in Dallas’ list of excellent picks at the top and deeper throughout the draft. Leach worked with Ken Holland’s brother, Dennis, in Dallas, and both are credited for pushing for several of the team’s major finds, including Heiskanen and Oettinger, as well as a big hand in drafting Nick Robertson’s brother, Jason, who is now a bona fide star player in the league.
The Stars have thrived at unearthing gems in the late first round (Oettinger, Johnston, Harley) and the second round (Hintz, Robertson, Stankoven). The Leafs will be doing everything in their power to contend for the remainder of the Auston Matthews window and, barring an unforeseen setback, will likely be buyers at the trade deadline for the foreseeable future. Late first-pick selections in each draft class and significant sacrifices of draft pick capital to chase Cups have been the reality in Toronto and will continue to be commonplace to some extent in the coming seasons.
The Leafs own one pick in the first four rounds next year and just three total picks in 2026. They currently own a total of seven selections in the next two drafts, which essentially means they’ll skip an entire draft in terms of pick volume unless they recoup some draft capital. Leach’s draft team will need to make the most out of little to work with.
