Before making the NHL, Playfair played for the Fort Saskatchewan Traders located just north of Edmonton.

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.

[3] 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.