In light of the New York Rangers announcing Mike Sullivan as their next head coach, here are three things to know about the 38th bench boss in franchise history:
He’s a winner
The 57-year-old spent the last 10 seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins, with the first two ending with Stanley Cup titles.
Those 2016 and 2017 championships started a run of seven straight playoff seasons for the Sullivan-led Pens, but the aging roster failed to reach the postseason in each of the last three.
As they embark on a rebuilding effort, the decision was made for the longtime head coach to part ways with the organization where his 409 regular-season wins rank first in franchise history.
He’s got Blueshirts’ connections
Sullivan was selected by the Rangers in the fourth round (No. 69 overall) of the 1987 NHL Draft.
The left-handed shooting center never suited up for New York, though, instead completing his full four seasons at Boston University (the same college as Blueshirts team president Chris Drury) before becoming a free agent and signing with the San Jose Sharks in 1990. He went on to play 11 seasons in the NHL for the Sharks, Flames, Bruins and Coyotes.
He finally made his Rangers’ debut in 2009 as an assistant coach for John Tortorella and spent the next four seasons on the New York bench, with Drury serving as team captain for the first two.
He’s a USA Hockey guy
The Marschfield, Massachusetts native played for Team USA in the 1988 World Juniors and 1997 World Championships and served as head coach for this year’s 4 Nations Face-Off, where the Americans took second after falling to Team Canada in overtime of the championship final.
He’ll remain in that position for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
That experience seemingly strengthened his bond with Drury, who served as an assistant general manger for the U.S. at 4 Nations and has always had an affinity for fellow USA Hockey products.
Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.