The coaching express lane between the Seattle Kraken and Toronto Maple Leafs could be getting a new commuter.
Before Dave Hakstol became the first Kraken coach in 2021, he spent time as an assistant in Toronto. Current Seattle coach Lane Lambert did the same.
In this case, the pipeline would be running in the opposite direction, albeit indirectly. Former Kraken assistant coach Jay Leach (2021-24) is rumored to be in the running for the vacant top job with the Maple Leafs. That’s according to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period.
After missing the playoffs for the first time in a decade, the Leafs’ newly-installed front office canned coach Craig Berube on May 13.
Leach Spent Three Seasons As Kraken Assistant
When Hakstol was fired in 2024, Leach left Seattle because he wasn’t offered the Kraken head coaching job that went instead to Dan Bylsma. Leach returned to the Boston Bruins organization, where he’d previously been a player and Providence Bruins AHL head coach.
Unfortunately for Leach, even the Seattle coaching carousel couldn’t match the turnover in Boston. The Bruins cycled through three head coaches in the two years Leach was an assistant there. Current bench boss Marco Sturm inherited Leach; coaches like to pick their own staff, so Leach was told his expiring contract wouldn’t be extended.
A similar situation happened last month in Seattle between Lambert and now-departed assistant coach Jessica Campbell, a holdover from Bylsma’s staff.
Rising Star Or Falling Star?
From the Boston Globe: “Leach was viewed as a rising star in the coaching ranks during both his time with Providence and later in Seattle, with the former NHL D-man tasked with running Boston’s defense during his latest stint in Boston from 2024-26.
“He also took a greater role in running the club’s penalty kill in 2025-26. But Boston’s defensive structure struggled during each of the last two seasons under Leach’s watch.”
Ironically, Leach himself had applied for the Bruins head coaching job (as well as others) in 2025. By the way, the Bruins didn’t officially announce that Leach wouldn’t return. The telltale sign was his removal from the team website.
The sad but true NHL coach real estate mantra is, “rent, don’t buy.”
Earlier Kraken:
— Kraken 2026-’27 Outlook; First The Good News
