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Leafs fill out coaching staff, hire Hiller, Smith and Brewer

Buffalo Sabres v Detroit Red Wings

Buffalo Sabres v Detroit Red Wings

Dave Reginek

The Toronto Maple Leafs filled out Mike Babcock’s coaching staff naming three assistant coaches on Tuesday.

Jim Hiller and Andrew Brewer, who spent time with Babcock in Detroit, join the Leafs.

Toronto also added D.J. Smith to their coaching staff. Smith coached the Ontario Hockey League’s Oshawa Generals to a Memorial Cup victory last month.

Additionally, Matthew J. Herring joins the club as the team’s new head strength and conditioning coach.

“I’m excited to have them join the organization,” Babcock said in a statement. “We have a lot of work ahead of us but are all thrilled to be part of the Maple Leafs. We’re grateful for the cooperation afforded to us by the Detroit Red Wings, Oshawa Generals and San Antonio Spurs.”

Hiller spent the 2014-15 season on Babcock’s staff in Detroit overseeing the club’s power play. Prior to joining the Wings, the 46-year-old spent five seasons as head coach of the Western Hockey League’s Tri-City Americans.

“I’m excited at the opportunity of working again with Mike, and to also add to the value that both D.J. and Andrew bring,” Hiller said. “I’ve been fortunate enough to work with many great organizations - most recently the Red Wings - and am grateful for the chance to now join the Leafs.”

Brewer spent the 2014-15 season coordinating the team’s coaching staff in Detroit. Prior to joining the Wings, the 29-year-old spent three years with Hockey Canada as their video coach for several international events including Canada’s gold-medal team at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

Thanks to @DetroitRedWings for a great year, incredible fans & people to be around, truly an amazing organization to get to work for

— Andrew Brewer (@BrewNation) June 16, 2015

Smith led the Generals to a 51-11-2-4 record in 2014-15 on route to winning the Ontario Hockey League Championship and Memorial Cup. The 38-year-old won the OHL’s Coach of the Year award during the 2013-14 season after leading Oshawa to a regular season record of 42-20-0-6.

Herring joins the Leafs after spending the past two seasons as an athletic performance associate with the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs. With the Spurs, his responsibilities included strength and conditioning, sports science and nutrition. The 29-year-old was a part of the San Antonio organization during their NBA Championship season in 2013-14.

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