The Pittsburgh Penguins officially parted ways with Mike Sullivan on Monday, ending his wildly successful decade-long run with the organization. While it makes sense for the now rebuilding Penguins to want a new voice in their locker room, esepeially after another lost season, this decision comes as a bit of a surprise, considering his outstanding track record and the unlikelihood that his replacement will be any better.
Sullivan, even despite Pittsburgh's lack of recent success, led this team to back-to-back Stanley Cup wins and seven straight postseason appearances. Coaches like that don't grow on trees.
Now, with Pittsburgh agreeing to allow Sullivan to land elsewhere, they open the door to him joining a team that can come back to haunt the Pens in a big way. Any of these three landing spots would do just that.
3) Mike Sullivan can help turn his hometown Bruins around
Sullivan got his NHL head coaching career started with the Boston Bruins, but he only stuck around for two seasons before getting fired. Getting let go might deter Sullivan from Boston slightly, but as a Massachusetts native, he'd likely hear them out. If there's mutual interest here, that might end up being bad news for the Penguins.
The Bruins are coming off a disastrous season in which they finished with just 76 points and missed the playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade, but they have an established core. David Pastrnak is one of the best players in the NHL. Charlie McAvoy is a star No. 1 defenseman. Jeremy Swayman, even with his down year, is one of the best goaltenders in the league.
The depth needs a lot of work, but giving Sullivan a star-studded core to work with could result in this Bruins team getting back to prominence sooner rather than later. They might not be in Pittsburgh's division, but they are an Eastern Conference foe, and one the Pens would not love to see Sullivan coach.
2) Mike Sullivan can help the Flyers take the next step
How much of a backbreaker would it be for Sullivan to land with Pittsburgh's in-state rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers? My assumption is very, especially with the Flyers potentially on the come-up.
The Flyers had just 76 points this past season and missed the playoffs for the fifth straight year, but there are a lot of intriguing pieces in place. Philadelphia's forward group is improving, led by future superstar Matvei Michkov. The defense is the team's biggest strength, as evidenced by the Flyers' ranking among the best teams in expected goals against according to Moneypuck.
The two things that held Philadelphia back this past season were its bottom-tier power play and its horrific goaltending. Improving in those areas would be easier said than done, but the foundation is in place for the Flyers to take a leap, perhaps as soon as next season. Sullivan helping lead the Flyers back to relevance would be an unfortunate sight for Penguins fans.
1) The Rangers are a perfect fit for Mike Sullivan
If we're being honest, it'd be surprising to see Sullivan end up with a team that wasn't the New York Rangers. He's been linked to the team for years, and now, Chris Drury and Co. finally have a chance to make their dream a reality. It'd be hard to envision them messing it up.
The Rangers have pretty much everything Sullivan can possibly want. They play in a huge market, are an Original Six team, and are built to win now more than any other team with a head coaching vacancy. Whether this team can actually get over the hump and hoist the Stanley Cup can be debated, especially with Drury still in place as the team's GM, but the pieces, led by the likes of Igor Shesterkin, Artemi Panarin, and Adam Fox are certainly in place. Sullivan could be the missing piece for a core that has come so close on a couple of occasions.
The Rangers, much like the Flyers, are a Metropolitan Division rival of Pittsburgh's as well. They'd have to face him three or four times a year, and with the roster that the Rangers have, there's a non-zero chance that he'll end up lifting the Stanley Cup with New York sooner rather than later.