The New York Rangers named Mike Sullivan as their subsequent head coach on Friday morning, 4 days after he mutually parted methods with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The workforce fired Peter Laviolette on April 19 after he spent simply two seasons as New York’s head coach.
“Mike Sullivan has established himself as one of many premier head coaches within the NHL,” Rangers GM Chris Drury stated in a press launch. “Given his quite a few accomplishments all through his teaching profession – together with two Stanley Cups and main Workforce USA on the worldwide stage – Mike brings a championship-level presence behind the bench. I’ve gotten to know Mike very nicely through the years, together with as teammates within the 1997 World Championships, when he coached me as a participant in New York and thru our shared time working along with USA Hockey. As we started this course of and Mike turned an accessible choice for us to talk with, it was instantly clear that he was the very best coach to guide our workforce.”
“I wish to welcome Mike again to the Rangers group,” stated James L. Dolan, MSG Government Chairman and CEO. “Mike’s monitor file and success within the NHL and internationally speaks for itself, and I look ahead to seeing him behind the Rangers bench.”
Sullivan has posted a 479-311-15-112 file in 917 video games as head coach with the Boston Bruins (2003-04–2005-06) and Pittsburgh Penguins (2015-16-2024-25). Throughout his tenure with the Penguins, he led the workforce to back-to-back Stanley Cup Championships in 2015-16 and 2016-17, and within the course of, he turned simply the second head coach in NHL historical past to win the Stanley Cup in every of his first two seasons with a workforce. Sullivan can also be the one American-born head coach in NHL historical past who has gained the Stanley Cup a number of instances however the two sides parted methods after Pittsburgh missed the postseason for the third consecutive season.
Throughout Sullivan’s tenure with the Penguins, the workforce posted a 409-255-89 file in 753 common season video games. He helped Pittsburgh attain the postseason in every of his first seven seasons behind the Penguins’ bench, and the Penguins posted a 44-38 file in 82 postseason video games with Sullivan as their head coach. Sullivan is the Penguins’ all-time chief in a number of teaching classes, together with common season video games coached, common season wins, postseason video games coached, and postseason wins.
Along with his head teaching expertise within the NHL, Sullivan has been part of teaching staffs for a number of NHL groups. He has eight years of expertise as an Assistant Coach with 4 completely different NHL groups: Boston (2002-03), the Tampa Bay Lightning (2007-08 – 2008-09), NY Rangers (2009-10 – 2012-13), and Vancouver (2013-14). Sullivan was additionally the event coach for the Chicago Blackhawks throughout the 2014-15 season after they gained the Stanley Cup. Sullivan additionally served components of two seasons as a head coach within the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Windfall Bruins (2002-03) and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (2015-16).
Internationally, the Marshfield, Massachusetts native has coached with Workforce USA in a number of tournaments. Sullivan served as Workforce USA’s head coach on the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off, and he was named the top coach for the U.S. Olympic Males’s Ice Hockey Workforce for the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics. Sullivan had additionally initially been named the top coach for Workforce USA on the 2022 Winter Olympics (in the end didn’t coach within the event after NHL gamers have been unable to play). He additionally served as an Assistant Coach for Workforce USA on the 2006 Winter Olympics and the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
The Rangers completed twelfth with a 3.11 goals-per-game common, nineteenth with a 3.11 goals-against per recreation common, twenty eighth with a .176 power-play effectivity, and eleventh with a .803 penalty-killing effectivity in a season the place they traded six starters from their opening evening roster, together with captain Jacob Trouba.
New York went an NHL-worst 5-16-0 (.238) from November 20-January 4, which included a 3-1 loss to the Twenty ninth-placed Philadelphia Flyers on November 29, 5-3 loss to the Twenty seventh-placed Seattle Kraken at house regardless of main 3-1 on December 8, 2-1 loss to the Thirty first-placed Chicago Blackhawks at Madison Sq. Backyard the next day, and 2-0 loss to the Thirtieth-placed Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Area on December 17. Additionally they obtained outscored 14-3 in two losses to the Twenty sixth-placed Buffalo Sabres and fell 3-2 at house to Twenty fourth-placed Pittsburgh on February 7 although neither Sidney Crosby nor Evgeni Malkin suited up for Pittsburgh that evening.
Sullivan will likely be New York’s third coach in 4 seasons.
The Anaheim Geese, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh, and Seattle Kraken are the one groups looking for a brand new head coach.
By Harrison Brown
