Barn Burner: Boomer & Pinder with Rhett Warrener - Why Did The Toronto Maples Leafs Hire Jim Hiller?? w/TSN's Darren Dreger | BB Clips

Episode Date: June 17, 2026

Boomer, Pinder and Rhett are joined by TSN's Darren Dreger to break down the Toronto Maple Leafs hiring Jim Hiller as the next head coach of the franchise. The move marks a new era in Toronto as Hiller reunites with an organization he previously worked for as an assistant coach before stops with the New York Islanders and Los Angeles Kings. Dregs shares his thoughts on why the Leafs landed on Hiller, what stood out during the hiring process, and what this decision says about the direction of the organization moving forward. The guys also discuss how Hiller fits alongside new GM John Chayka, what changes Leafs fans should expect to see on the ice, and whether this hire signals a different approach for a team still searching for playoff success. With major expectations once again surrounding Toronto, is Jim Hiller the right coach to finally get the Leafs over the hump? Let us know what you think in the comments.Video Link: https://youtu.be/0M_b9ECei4I#nhl #nhlshorts #nhlplayoffs #nhlpredictions #nhlhockey #nhlpicks #stanleycup #stanleycupfinal #torontomapleleafs CHECK OUT OUR STUFF ⬇️BARN BURNER MERCHhttps://nationgear.ca/collections/shirts/FlamesnationBARN BURNER SHORTS https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLj_bcGtvvo-cW2DHEDZ6dEO5ePDmlhZc9&si=jo8iNGxT4ImhS2Y8📲 Follow us:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fnbarnburner/X (Twitter): https://x.com/barnburnerfn?lang=en🎧 Listen on:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/be/podcast/barn-burner-boomer-pinder-with-rhett-warrener/id1648562889Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3Mc6Qd5U22R2zbMlQ7RxIiProducer: Jack Haverstock Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Well, the Leafs hired a coach today. Who? Someone more familiar with, kind of. The GM was not on the radar when the Leafs hired him. And I would say, I don't know, maybe my radar isn't quite as intuitive as it needs to be. You're way up. Jim Hiller, formerly of the L.A. Kings, is the new head coach. Famous in this market for blowing a, what looked like a ironclad lock.

of a series against the Oilers when he played four defensemen and used the time out to challenge something and gave the Oilers a power play and watched him steamback and lose the series. I thought maybe he'd go to Edmondson because he's been good for the Oilers in the past. Really has, yeah. Now, he did spend time behind the Leafs bench.

There's a assistant there, yeah. When Babber was there, he was working with the forwards, apparently. So he's got some ties. With Babber? Yeah. With Babber, yeah. Isn't it Babs or is it Babber? I'm doing Babber now because I brought up Babber and you're like, it's not Babber. It's kind of like Bobber.

No one was calling Bobrovsky Bobber. So they brought him back? Because he was so good. He was back. Yeah. There's a, yeah. So while you take anything you got, you know,

and then I'll fill in the holes. Just I was, I, doesn't feel like a sexy hire. You know, while Toronto's tough market and you got to have this type of a coach because it's not quite to that extent of Edmonton, right?

No. You got to, there's personalities. There's personalities in Toronto still. What are you doing with Matthews? So maybe this is one of those things. He worked with the forwards apparently when he was there with batter. So maybe there is some.

He knows relationship to be played off of it. Yeah. Like there's no question that Austin Matthews and William Neeler know this guy. And if you're in the business of keeping Austin around, I'm not saying you're trying to appease him, but it wouldn't be someone that Austin Matthews does not like or didn't think was a good coach. And it's funny because we'll always remember in this, market the losses to the Oilers in round one, they were a very good defensive team for his

two and a half seasons there. They weren't great, but they were really solid defensively. And what were the Leafs last year? A mess defensively. How are you working with? Does have some. Oh, the roster you're given for sure. Yeah.

If that's what you mean. Yes. Yeah. Does it ever really work when you hire a coach to appease the players? I don't know that this is appeasing. There's just a prior relationship. Right, but it would be like, I would, if it is appeasing, it won't work.

Because you know, there would have, it would have to be appeasing to a certain extent. They're going to, so what about Jim Hiller? Let's talk to these guys because they play with, what did you think of Jim when he was here? Oh, I like Jim. Okay, then we'll hire Jim.

It's not to the extent that it seems to be going up, up the road where the players are conducting the coaching interviews, but, um, apparently, yeah. What? I think that when you look at the way his hockey teams played and the way that Chica wants to build this team, I think there's a fit there. He seems to be a more analytically inclined coach, whatever that means from people around the hiring process. You just said words and I don't understand.

Yeah, and I hear the words. I don't know, like, because you were good defensively and you had a strong possession team, are you speaking? So is that what Chaka wants and how do you know that? And I'm not putting you on the spot. I know, and this is what other people are saying, and it's like, Jake is going to be analytically inclined. That's his background. That's how he got into hockey.

He starts the staff, leads company, he goes to Phoenix. He's always been a numbers advanced metrics guy. And Hillers teams have always been good by those metrics, but never got through the first round. I would think they would view a lot of stuff similarly. And then if you're like, oh, Willie and Austin, you know this guy.

What was he like as an assistant? They clearly didn't say, don't like them no way. Yeah, yeah. And maybe it is just a piece of them. It's not going to work if that's the case. If they think he's a really good hire for what they have and what their deficiencies were and the guys like him, okay. But I don't know.

Like there is an urgency here like Edmonton. You're kind of in this soft retool in a way. But there's Matthews. Matthews. The Matthews clock is ticking. It is. And they also pick one and they were just structurally awful last year plus the bad goaltending, which makes everything look worse. I don't know.

It's not sexy. it might work. I thought Travis Green had a really shitty tenure in Vancouver. I think he's been a really good coach in Ottawa. He did have a shitty tenure. And so it's not always your first job where everyone's like, that's the coach and that's the ceiling. It's usually,

like he's probably a better coach from what he went through in L.A. We are railing on. I don't know if he's a good coach. Yeah, I don't know. I don't know if he's the guy for the job. Again, I will reiterate what you said. If it's an appeasement for the players, it doesn't ever work.

Rod Brandenbore does not change what he wants to accomplish. right to make his players happy yeah kiss my ass you can go somewhere else you play they were second in the n hl and his tenure head coach in shots against and goals against airtight defensively now maybe that's the personnel l a yeah and again like they we saw what was it kemper had some incredible numbers one year they didn't have a lot of gamebreakers offensively beyond kempa you do have some good shutdown centers there like deno and copatar i just don't know like is that the personnel. Well, it's all the above. How different is Hillers approach going to be than Barubes? I think Barubes would be a little more hitch over the head approach, but he would

be considered a both ends of the ice at minimum coach, right? I think Barabas is the hard work. If we've got to guess, we'll go right now. I think Burubi's the work harder guy and Hiller probably a little more structure, but that's just my feel. So to answer your question, of course, Jim Hiller was on the bingo card near a point where we thought, any of us thought that he was going to be the head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, no, no.

And look, you know, he's not the sexiest name out there. So I think from that perspective, Leif's Nation and some of the reaction is obvious. You know, John Chek has made it known that they left no stone unturned, right?

They talk to dozens of potential candidates. And, you know, some surfaced, you know, David Carl initially from Denver, Patrick Waugh. I mean, that was the name that I think Leif's Nation was captivated by just because of the history of Patrick Waugh. And I just came into the conversation, but I'm just wondering, and I have time for Hiller

because more often than not, when guys get fired as first time coaches, they learn some valuable lessons. Like Jay Woodcroft is going to be a better head coach in the national hockey than he was when he was in Edmonton because he knows now that you can't have the ego that he had, the attitude at times that he had in Edmonton and have ultimate success. Sometimes you've got to be able to take it on the chin, right? And he would learn that. And he's coming off a really good year with Joel Cuenville and the Anaheim Ducks.

So he'll be a better NHL head coach. And that's what I think brass in Toronto feels of, of Jay. Jim Hiller. And then he's got the market experience in Toronto as an assistant coach. And he knows that core of the Toronto Maple Leafs well. So those are the praises. Those are the accolades. But then you have to make the comparison.

And I think this is where I jumped in with you guys having that talk. You know, I thought Craig Barrowby is a good coach. Now two years left at $4.5 million. I can appreciate why a new regime comes in. And they want to clean the slate and start fresh. But is Jim Hiller better qualified? than Craig Barouba was? I'm not so sure.

I'm not so sure. Tough to look at the resume and say he is, for sure. Would it be fair to suggest he'd be better structure for their back end? That's where things fell apart like you. They couldn't get back to the other ones. Can I jump on that just as a player? Yeah.

What does that mean? I mean, because we all, we're in the media now and we use words to describe what we think is going on in the dress agreement. What is structure? Yeah. because and I don't mean it in a negative way.

If my, if I got a two on two coming on defensemen, me and my partner were playing a two on two. And the structure is I've got this guy, you've got that guy. Oh shit, my buddy fell. Do I stick to the structure?

No. How close is structure to discipline and staying with just what everyone knows is the game playing together, supporting each other? Like, it's a catchphrase. And I'm not, you're good, you're good. I think structure to me and it's obvious is defined by what we saw and see annually from the Carolina Hurricanes. When you've got a collection of players who play the same way, not as individuals, but within that system, right?

Then it makes it easier for the general manager, Eric Tulski, who's an analytics-driven executive, to go, all right, well, I know the type of player that Rod Brindamore wants and demands because I know what our system is good at under Brindamore. So now I'm going to look and I'm going to collect a pool of players that I believe are available that provide also the best analytics in that style of play. And I think that Carolina embodies that now more than any. So maybe to me that's what structure means.

When you have a collection of guys who are going to play the way need to play to win and do it on a shift by shift basis. And it's almost, you make a great point. I was asking as a curiosity, and what you said actually makes sense where it actually carries up further. Yes, the players on the ice have a structure and a system that they want to play that's supported by the coach and the GM and the ownership.

You know what I mean? That's the structure. The whole Vegas has some structure. We're going to be cutthroat. You know what I mean? You can expect it. To me, that, okay, that's structure. But I don't know that there's a coach out there that just walks in and goes,

you'll let the horses run. Let's go. This would be great. We're going to have a hell of a time. Yeah. Now, you watched them a ton last year. Like, you're in the market. You do some regional stuff on TSN for their games.

Like, if we wanted to chalk up last year's horrible season nobody saw coming bad for the leaves, what let them down? Because from a million miles away, it felt like goaltending is the base. biggest one and in this point you can't hide from bad goltney and the other was they just couldn't get out of their own zone cleanly. Is that something that Jim Hiller can help them with? Well, it depends on what that blue line looks like. Yeah.

And that's back to your point where it's GM and players and coach that has to, there's got to be a better way. And I think that's the thing that trade was yesterday about two. They needed a buck move. Yeah. And look, so we've had some time to, to digest that trade. And we're talking about Joseph Wall and Simone Benoit to the Philadelphia Flyers.

And it looks to me. me like it's a couple of things. So it looks to me like Toronto is trying to save a few dollars because they do want to get into the free agent market and they covet Darren Radish. If Radish gets July 1, I think Toronto's going to be as big a player as there is in the market to acquire him. But that's going to come at the expense of defensemen. You know, Morgan Riley isn't going to be back. As soon as they find the right fit for Morgan, you know, they'll execute there. There's talk around Jake McCabe, which is curious to me because Jake McCabe, isn't the defenseman that he once was.

But I'll tell you what he is. He's solid. And he's a hell of a high character individual. And they need that. Around that room, they need that. So that's why, you know, what does that blue line look like? Jim Hillary isn't coming in there with a better

idea or handled than the staff that Craig Barubei had to rework the defense and how they play in Toronto. And look, I would give Austin and Matthew's credit for how his game is developed over time. And he's actually a pretty good defensive center.

He's actually pretty good. But he's not surrounded by players who commit to playing that way. So is, is Hiller going to be able to do that? And, you know, there's wheeling and dealing that still hasn't done. I mean, this Matthew Nye stuff is real fellas. I don't understand the whole picture and talk about structure for this organization. Jake is just putting his fingers into it and his hands are starting to work with it.

But I don't, all those things that you just point, I'm like, I don't, this is confusing to me. A little bit. So now you go back to Wall and okay, if there's a money play on this, sure. Are you nervous about the reliability of your goal tend to? Because that's really what it was last year. It was, those guys couldn't stay healthy. But now they have depth in that position. Actia Amoff has been really good for the Marleys in the American League.

So they feel good about what's coming there. It's just the negative reaction from other teams and sources I have around the league are like, why did he jump so early with this? You know, with Wohl. The coaching hire? Oh, the trading of the goalie. You know, I mean, but obviously John Chica would have made as many calls as necessary to gauge what the market is and what the appetite is. And sometimes you don't know what your goalie market is until you get in.

season and you go, oh, my goal attending stinks or somebody gets hurt and then you have to work that way. So there are so many question marks around Toronto and now why Jim Hiller, I suppose, is another one that isn't going to be answered until the roster is put together and the coaching staff can actually work with what they have. We don't know what they have at this point. At the Rett's point, like, what's their philosophy going to be in terms of how they want to play? Well, we're seeing personnel changes. We see a coach. We're starting to get some clues. We knew what they were bad at last year. Then the other whole thing that's hanging over the head that's even bigger

is like, okay, you got two years left to Austin Matthews, but you also have the chance to build around a brand new core with the first overall pitch. Like it's, it's a fascinating balance between long term and short term. Yeah. It definitely is. And again, it's a tricky one because I'm sure that Chica and Matt Saneen and the group that advises there have a better handle on

the direction they need to go. You know, somebody told me this morning, I mean, this time of years, we approached the draft, it's all lip service, right? I mean, we've been speculating on, okay, picks one through, I don't know, eight, ten are in play. Well, are they really? You know, if you're the Toronto Maple Leafs, are you moving the first pick overall? And I think that I got to couch it a little bit, but I think it's fair to say that's unlikely. All right.

So if you draft Gavin McKenna, he's a winger, you know, you'll play in the national accuracy. ready not next year. He'll be, so what is that doing for Austin Matthews? He's got two years remaining. If you're trading Matthew Nyes, you'd better darn well get back some cost certainty, right? It probably needs to be a center. Well, there aren't that many centers on the market that are available or interested in coming into Toronto. So it's just a little bit sketchy all around, not just with Toronto, but in a lot of different

markets. But I think a lot of what we're seeing now and hearing about and reporting on, especially on the trade front fellas, is because the unrestricted free agent market is as thin as we've seen it in years. So players like Hello Buck's name is out there. Obviously Nurse Lark and we know because they're requested trade, but the list of players in play is substantial. There's no doubt about that. And guys with some name and some swag.