4 takeaways from Maple Leafs’ Jim Hiller and John Chayka’s pre-draft media availability

Ahead of what will be a franchise-altering weekend for the Toronto Maple Leafs, head coach Jim Hiller and general manager John Chayka met with reporters Thursday at the Ford Performance Centre. Hiller was formally introduced to the larger media contingent, while Chayka offered his thoughts and updates on a number of topics, ahead of the 2026 NHL Draft.

Here are some quick takeaways from Hiller and Chayka’s media availabilities:

Maple Leafs will listen to offers, but aren’t actively shopping Matthew Knies

Maple Leafs general manager John Chayka once again rejected the notion that the team is actively shopping Matthew Knies. Knies is a 23-year-old power forward that every team in the NHL would be interested in, if he were made available. Although Toronto has held conversations about every pick within the top ten, aside from the first overall selection (more on this below) Chayka and company aren’t working as the initiators in any potential Knies deal.

“Matthew is an elite power forward in the prime of his career, at a number that we think allows us to build a great team around him,” Chayka said. “That all sounds pretty good to me. My job is to make the team better, but all the things I just said make that incredibly difficult to do so.”

Knies would represent the quickest avenue to gaining the No. 2 overall pick, if it were made available in a trade by the San Jose Sharks. He’s also the bridge between the Maple Leafs’ immediate win-now window, and a bright future, where he would operate as one of the franchise pillars alongside Gavin McKenna. It’s silly season, and unless Chayka receives an offer he cannot refuse, Matthew Knies will be a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs on opening night.

Jim Hiller has full confidence in Morgan Rielly as long-term component

Morgan Rielly’s agent has reportedly submitted a list of four Western Conference teams that his client would waive his no-trade clause for, in order to facilitate a deal. Rielly is the Maple Leafs’ longest-tenured player and though some view his $7.5 million cap hit as prohibitive, after a season where he underwent precipitous decline, it appears the team’s braintrust still has plenty of faith in him.

Jim Hiller has been formally introduced as the next head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Rielly may be on the block, but he has Jim Hiller’s full confidence. Hiller said he will meet with Rielly next week.

“I’m really excited to get a chance to get to coach him again. I thought Morgan during my time here was a really good player, was a great person. And so for me, I look at him as being part of the solution,” Hiller said.

“I hope he’s part of the team in the future. And if it goes a different direction, well, so be it. That’s nothing that I can control.

Rielly has been lauded for his leadership skills, but is there a fit in Toronto? Chayka has already acquired Darren Raddysh as a foundational piece, while the team is expected to sign RFA Emil Andrae to a team-friendly contract this summer. There may be room for Rielly’s skill set, but the Maple Leafs may elect to find a new home for the 32-year-old defenceman, after spending his entire career with the Maple Leafs. If it were up to Hiller, Rielly would still have a home on Toronto’s blue line.

It’ll be compelling to see whether Rielly remains with the team, after it was long believed that both parties would part ways this summer. It should be noted that Rielly loves living in Toronto, and isn’t trying to force a trade for the sake of it.

Will size be a differentiator for the Maple Leafs at the 2026 NHL Draft?

Maple Leafs director of amateur scouting Mark Leach often spoke about size as a differentiating factor at the draft. Last year, every Maple Leafs draft pick measured over 6-foot-1. Although the Maple Leafs will select Gavin McKenna first overall, barring a massive shock, from there onwards, it’s anyone’s guess where their priority lies. Chayka didn’t tip his hand, but seemed to indicate that he’s not keen on replicating the same strategy as Brad Treliving unveiled last summer.

“Yeah, I think it’s never two equivalent prospects realistically, but certainly, if you look at the teams that have won historically, they’ve been big strong teams that can get through the grind of a 7-game playoff series,” Chayka said.

“Having said that, if you look at Carolina, they just recently won, there’s a lot of really good smaller-stature players that bring smarts and competitiveness and buy into a style of play. So I’d say we’re trying to consider all these variables. We’re not trying to put one above the rest, other than we really want smart, competitive players. We think we can stack that round after round, pick after pick. We’ll end up in a pretty good spot.

The NHL is often thought of as a copycat league, and the league’s collective scouting intelligentsia determined that size was the easiest route to replicating the Florida Panthers. We’ll see if Chayka looks to build the Toronto Maple Leafs’ next wave of prospects, with a nod to the Carolina Hurricanes.

Anthony Stolarz is the starting goaltender, Chris Tanev resumes skating

Toronto’s goaltending depth is an area of strength and accelerated a trade involving Joseph Woll and Simon Benoit, where the club received Emil Andrae, Samuel Ersson, and a third-round pick in exchange. Artur Akhtyamov is the reigning Calder Cup Playoffs MVP, while Dennis Hildeby was arguably the Maple Leafs’ best goalie at the NHL level last year. Chayka plainly advocated for Anthony Stolarz, while telling reporters that the veteran goaltender is in good health. It doesn’t appear that the Maple Leafs have any interest in retaining Ersson, who was one of the NHL’s worst goaltenders in 2025-26.

Chris Tanev has resumed skating, while Auston Matthews continues to progress well from season-ending surgery. As the summer marches on, it appears the incumbent Maple Leafs are resting well, while looking ahead to a new era highlighted presumptively by Gavin McKenna.