Maple Leafs, Mark Hunter agree to part ways

The Toronto Maple Leafs and assistant general manager Mark Hunter mutually agreed to part ways, the team announced Tuesday.

Maple Leafs president and alternate governor Brendan Shanahan said the decision followed "extensive discussions."

After the news in late April that Lou Lamoriello would not return as the club's GM, Hunter and fellow assistant Kyle Dubas became the two front-runners to fill the vacancy. Toronto ultimately hired Dubas.

Shanahan also confirmed that Hunter has a non-compete agreement until mid-July, meaning he can't work for another team until then, according to Joshua Clipperton of the Canadian Press.

This makes sense from Toronto's perspective, considering the amount of knowledge Hunter has of the Leafs' strategy for both the draft and free agency.

Hunter offered to stay on through the draft - which is a month away - but the team felt is was best to "make a clean break" given that his departure was inevitable, per Clipperton.

Hunter, 55, has a wealth of experience both as a coach and an executive in the junior hockey ranks - most notably spending 12 years as owner, vice president, and GM of the OHL's London Knights before joining the Maple Leafs' front office in 2014.

Given that experience in junior hockey, Hunter's primary responsibilities with the Leafs included drafting, player evaluation, and player development. Under his watch, they drafted the likes of Mitch Marner, Travis Dermott, Auston Matthews, and Timothy Liljegren, and signed undrafted European free agents such as Nikita Zaitsev and Andreas Borgman.

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