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Jim Playfair
Jim Playfair
Born	May 22, 1964 (age 60); Fort St. James, British Columbia, Canada
Height	6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position	Defence
Shot	Left
Played for	Edmonton Oilers; Chicago Blackhawks
Coached for	Calgary Flames
NHL draft	20th overall, 1982; Edmonton Oilers
Playing career	1983–1992
Coaching career	1993–2022

James Playfair (born May 22, 1964) is a Canadian former ice hockey coach and player. He is a former NHL ice hockey player and a former head coach of the Calgary Flames. He served as an associate coach for the Arizona Coyotes from 2011 to 2017, and for the Edmonton Oilers from 2019 to 2022.

Playing career

Before making the NHL, Playfair played for the Fort Saskatchewan Traders located just north of Edmonton. He played for the Edmonton Oilers and Chicago Blackhawks over the course of his career. His older brother Larry Playfair shares a lot of the same characteristics - both were drafted in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft (Larry in 1978 and Jim in 1982), and both played junior hockey for the Portland Winter Hawks of the Western Hockey League. However, Larry played in 688 career NHL games; Jim for 21.

Coaching career

Jim Playfair became the head coach of the Calgary Flames on July 12, 2006, a promotion from his role as an assistant coach and replacing Darryl Sutter who previously had been both head coach and general manager.^[1] Sutter continued as general manager of the Flames. Playfair was also previously the head coach of the Saint John Flames of the American Hockey League, where he coached the "Baby Flames" to a Calder Cup championship in 2001. He previously lived in Calgary, Alberta with his wife Roxane, and their three sons Dylan, Jackson, and Austyn.

On June 14, 2007, Playfair was replaced as head coach of the Calgary Flames by Mike Keenan, formerly of the Florida Panthers. In his first and only season as head coach of the Flames, the team went 43–29–10 which was good enough for the eighth and final playoff spot. The team went on to be eliminated by the Detroit Red Wings in the first round 4–2.

On June 5, 2009, Playfair began his second stint as a head coach in the American Hockey League after being named the head coach of the Abbotsford Heat (Calgary Flames affiliate). In his two seasons at the helm, Playfair led the Heat to a 77–61–9–13 record (176 points). In 2009–10, he guided the Heat to the North Division finals, falling to the Hamilton Bulldogs in six games. On March 27, 2010, during one of the division final games against the Bulldogs, Playfair lost his temper and broke two hockey sticks due to penalty calls; an incident which received a half million views on YouTube in three days and for which Playfair has apologized.^[2]

He was hired as the associate coach of the Arizona Coyotes on June 13, 2011. On June 27, 2017 the Coyotes and Playfair mutually parted ways. In June 2019, he was hired as an associate coach for the Edmonton Oilers. Playfair was fired by the Oilers in February 2022, along with head coach Dave Tippett.^[3]

Personal life

He is the father of actor Dylan Playfair,^[4] known for his role as Reilly in Letterkenny as well as Gil the Pirate in The Descendants trilogy on The Disney Channel.

Career statistics

Playing career

			Regular season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1980–81	Fort Saskatchewan Traders	AJHL	31	2	17	19	105	—	—	—	—	—
1981–82	Portland Winter Hawks	WHL	70	4	13	17	121	15	1	2	3	21
1982–83	Portland Winter Hawks	WHL	63	8	27	35	218	14	0	5	5	16
1983–84	Edmonton Oilers	NHL	2	1	1	2	2	—	—	—	—	—
1983–84	Portland Winter Hawks	WHL	16	5	6	11	38	—	—	—	—	—
1983–84	Calgary Wranglers	WHL	46	6	9	15	96	4	0	1	1	2
1984–85	Nova Scotia Oilers	AHL	41	0	4	4	107	—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	Nova Scotia Oilers	AHL	73	2	12	14	160	—	—	—	—	—
1986–87	Nova Scotia Oilers	AHL	60	1	21	22	82	—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL	12	1	3	4	21	—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	Saginaw Hawks	IHL	50	5	21	26	133	—	—	—	—	—
1988–89	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL	7	0	0	0	28	—	—	—	—	—
1988–89	Saginaw Hawks	IHL	23	3	6	9	73	6	0	2	2	20
1989–90	Indianapolis Ice	IHL	67	7	24	31	137	14	1	5	6	24
1990–91	Indianapolis Ice	IHL	23	3	4	7	31	—	—	—	—	—
1991–92	Indianapolis Ice	IHL	23	1	1	2	53	—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals			21	2	4	6	51	—	—	—	—	—
AHL totals			174	3	37	40	349	—	—	—	—	—
IHL totals			186	19	56	75	427	20	1	7	8	44

Head coaching record

NHL

Year	Team	League	Regular season						Post season
Year	Team	League	G	W	L	OTL	Pts	Finish	Result
2006–07	Calgary	NHL	82	43	29	10	96	3rd in Northwest	Lost in First Round (DET)

Minor leagues

Year	Team	League	Regular season							Post season
Year	Team	League	G	W	L	T	OTL	Pts	Finish	Result
1993–94	Dayton	ECHL	68	29	31	—	8	66	5th in North	Lost in First Round (TOL)
1994–95	Dayton	ECHL	68	42	17	—	9	93	2nd in North	Lost in Second Round (GBM)
1995–96	Dayton	ECHL	70	35	28	—	7	77	5th in North	Lost in First Round (TOL)
2000–01	Saint John	AHL	80	44	24	7	5	100	1st in Canadian	Won Calder Cup (WBS)
2001–02	Saint John	AHL	80	29	34	13	4	75	5th in Canadian	Missed Playoffs
2002–03	Saint John	AHL	32	10	19	2	1	(71)	Promoted to NHL midseason

4 playoff appearances, 1 Calder Cup title

References

^ [1]
^ The Province Story(Vancouver Newspaper
^ "Jay Woodcroft takes over as Oilers head coach, replacing Dave Tippett". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
^ "What it's really like to grow up the child of a pro hockey player or coach".

External links

Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database

Preceded by Grant Fuhr	Edmonton Oilers first round draft pick 1982	Succeeded by Jeff Beukeboom
Preceded by Darryl Sutter	Head coach of the Calgary Flames 2006–07	Succeeded by Mike Keenan