The Penguins are moving on from head coach Mike Sullivan, per a team announcement.
“On behalf of Fenway Sports Group and the Penguins organization, I would like to thank Mike Sullivan for his unwavering commitment and loyalty to the team and City of Pittsburgh over the past decade,” said president of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas. “Mike is known for his preparation, focus, and fierce competitiveness. I was fortunate to have a front-row seat to his dedication to this franchise for the past two seasons. He will forever be an enormous part of Penguins history, not only for the impressive back-to-back Cups, his impact on the core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Bryan Rust, but more importantly, for his love and loyalty to the organization.”
It’s not a true firing – rather, a mutual decision for Sullivan to pursue another opportunity and for Pittsburgh to find a new identity behind the bench in the twilight of their core’s careers. Sullivan had two years left on a three-year extension. It’s unclear whether the Penguins will still pay him the money owed on that deal.
“A thorough search for the next head coach of the Penguins will begin immediately,” the team said. The Pens join the Blackhawks, Bruins, Ducks, Flyers, Kraken, and Rangers as teams with active vacancies at head coach.
It was another underwhelming 2024-25 season for Sullivan and the Penguins, who continued their slide down the standings and missed the playoffs for the third consecutive season. With a 34-36-12 record, Pittsburgh finished under .500 for the first time since going 22-46-14 in Crosby’s rookie season in 2005-06.
Sullivan has been the Pens’ bench boss for essentially the latter half of the Crosby-Malkin-Letang trifecta era. Promoted from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton midway through the 2015-16 season after Pittsburgh fired Mike Johnston, he immediately led the team to back-to-back championships in 2016 and 2017. But after beating the Flyers in the first round in 2018, Sullivan’s Penguins have yet to win a playoff series.
The 57-year-old was the second-longest tenured head coach in the league behind the Lightning’s Jon Cooper. His illustrious Pittsburgh era concludes with a 409-255-89 record (.602) in 753 regular-season games, holding the franchise wins record by a considerable margin over Dan Bylsma (252). Including his two-year tenure behind the Bruins’ bench in 2003-04 and 2005-06, Sullivan’s 479 career wins as head coach rank 32nd in NHL history. Since Sullivan assumed his duties in Pittsburgh on Dec. 12, 2015, the Pens rank eighth in the league in points percentage.
While Pittsburgh has significantly overhauled its depth ranks over the past few seasons, the vast majority of its core remains in place outside of Jake Guentzel, whom they traded to the Hurricanes at last year’s deadline. This is a more unexpected major change – Dubas told Wes Crosby of NHL.com last week he was expecting Sullivan back behind the bench for 2025-26. Perhaps today’s news is more at Sullivan’s request than the team’s.
Sullivan will be a person of interest in every active head coaching search. The Rangers have pursued him aggressively in the past, especially before he signed his extension in 2022. There’s no firm enough reporting yet to call them a frontrunner, but with Peter Laviolette out the door and Chris Drury still in his post as general manager, it’s nearly a given they’ll be among the most well-equipped teams to land his services.
Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images.
Finally. This is going to be the beginning of a great season.
The next head coach of the Boston Bruins?
I hate that we couldn’t trade him.
Intruding the next NYRs head coach.
Steelers, take note: a fresh start with a new coach is sometimes needed.
Wonder if this is why the HC of Denver backed out of the blackhawks search. Never know with a college coach but please anyone other than a retread
Sullivan and Bylsma might be 2 guys to at least interview for the Hawks gig. I’m not sure what AHL coaches have earned at least an interview but those 2 at least deserve an interview I would think. As long as it’s not one of the oldest retreads. Hey I heard Q got an interview. But nahhhhhhh. Pass. LOL
One of those guys is a great coach and the other is a very nice man.
Seems pretty obvious some tampering occurred here.
What tampering? Just make that up? Bylsma just got fired by the Kraken so………Who are they tampering with? The unemployment office?
Do you want audio from the room or something?
They planned to keep him. Now, he wants out to talk to other teams. Did he blindly quit a decade long high paying gig without knowing the other offers were there?
Lucky man. NY Rangers next stop. Bylsma to the Penguins.
Or Boston I feel Boston will coach his son in law
Hopefully no retreads, just another young guy like Dubas. Thankfully he traded Guentzel and brought in Karlsson and without his track record of never making it past the first round, the Pens might still be in contention. Maybe Derek Lalonde? Awesome, Dudes!
Do I sense sarcasm here? ;)
At this rate, Mario may have to save the franchise a second time.
I can’t speak to the Penguins situation, but Sullivan scratching Kyle Connor from Team USA’s lineup so he could play Kreider and Nelson instead is a fireable offense. :(
Just sayin’, it worked out the last time he replaced Bylsma.
It did. Except for the part where that’s not actually what happened.
There’s this other guy you have to hire first…and he is NOT good.
So, its starts to make sense. Perhaps Canucks management were not thrilled with the way Tochett managed the whole Pettersson/Miller issue. Perhaps they have encouraged him to look elsewhere hoping their number #1 alternative and a guy who has strong connections to Vancouver considers returning. Welcome home Mike Sullivan!
Yet the Steelers Tomlin and the Pirates Shelton remain at their jobs. Happens all the time, a new voice can revitalize a team.