Jim Playfair (Wikimedia Commons)
The Calgary Flames are now in search for a new head coach for their American Hockey League affiliate in Abbotsford.
On Monday, Jim Playfair was named the associate coach of the Phoenix Coyotes. Playfair, will be assisting Dave Tippett, who won the 2010 Jack Adams Award for NHL Coach of the Year.
Playfair is replacing Ulf Samuelsson, who was named as the head coach of Modo in the Swedish Elite League on May 2.
Playfair spent the last two seasons as the head coach for the Abbotsford Heat. He had a record of 77-61-22.
Prior to that, Playfair was the head coach of the Flames for the 2006-07 season, posting a record of 43-29-10. That year, the Flames finished 3rd in the Northwest Division, and eighth in the Western Conference, where they lost to the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference Quarterfinal 4-2.
From 2002-06, Playfair was the Flames’ assistant coach under Darryl Sutter and from 2007-09, was the Flames’ associate coach under Mike Keenan.
Over the last two seasons, the Coyotes have been one of the most remarkable stories of the National Hockey League. Despite all of the turmoil surrounding the future of the franchise, they have gone 93-51-20 in the last two seasons. However, the Coyotes have not equated their regular season success to playoff success, as they have lost each year to the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference Quarterfinals.
Tags: abbotsford heat, american hockey league, calgary flames, darryl sutter, dave tippett, detroit red wings, jim playfair, mike keenan, modo, phoenix coyotes, Swedish Elite League, ulf samuelsson
Loading ...
