Hajt, 47, joins Laviolette’s coaching staff after completing his ninth season (2015-17, 2019-26) with the Ontario Reign, the Kings’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, where he most recently served as an associate coach. During the 2017-18 and 2018-19 campaigns, Hajt was as an assistant coach with the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres on Phil Housley‘s staff, who now serves as the Kings’ associate coach.
He also spent one season as an assistant coach with the Manchester Monarchs (AHL) in 2014-15, where he was part of the 2015 Calder Cup Championship team. With Ontario, Hajt helped the Reign qualify for the playoffs on six occasions (2015, 2016, 2022-26), including two division titles (2016, 2026), and Western Conference Finals appearance (2016).
The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan native was also a part of the Ontario Hockey League’s (OHL) Guelph Storm from 2008-14 as an assistant coach for six seasons and as the team’s assistant general manager for one, where he helped lead the Storm to the 2014 OHL Championship and a second-place finish in the 2014 Memorial Cup.
As a player, Hajt skated in 582 career professional games across six leagues, including six games with the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers and Washington Capitals. The former blueliner appeared in 477 AHL games with Hamilton, Portland, and Lowell and had stints in the ECHL, DEL, Liiga, and Serie A.
