New Maple Leafs Scouting Chief Has Red Wings Roots
When Jim Nill joined the Dallas Stars as general manager in 2013, the Detroit Red Wings realized they were losing a big player.
They had no idea that Nill, who is renowned for having a talent sense, would bring in two of Detroit’s best scouts. Joe McDonnell and Mark Leach, two seasoned scouts, joined the Dallas team. As director of amateur scouting, McDonnell was appointed. As a consequence, the Stars are now among the NHL’s best drafting teams. Over the past ten years, the Stars have selected a number of players, including Wyatt Johnston
(23rd in 2021), Logan Stankoven (47th in 2021), Jason Robertson (39th in 2017), Jake Oettinger (26th in 2017), and Miro Heiskanen (No. 3 in 2017).
The Stars have continuously added
In the meantime, throughout Ken Holland’s final few years as general manager, the Red Wings faced a lot of criticism for making bad draft choices. Since GM Steve Yzerman assumed the position, Detroit’s drafting record has significantly improved.
On Thursday, Detroit was reminded just how important the deaths of Nill, McDonnell,
and Leach were. Leach moved to Toronto to work as the Maple Leafs’ scouting director after leaving Dallas. He is taking Wes Clark’s spot, who left to join former Toronto general manager Kyle Dubas at the Pittsburgh Penguins.
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