Sullivan reaffirms commitment to Penguins: 'All I want is to help this organization win'
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If Mike Sullivan and the Pittsburgh Penguins are to part ways, it will not be on his accord.
Sullivan who is in his 10th season as head coach of the Penguins told Josh Yohe of The Athletic that being behind the bench with another team hasn't crossed his mind.
“I don’t even think about it,” he said. “I have incredible loyalty to this organization. I’m grateful for the opportunity to coach this team. It’s been a privilege to coach this team, to be a part of this organization. I have a certain loyalty to all of the people who are a part of it here.”
Sullivan led the Penguins to the Stanley Cup upon taking over as head coach during the 2015-16 season and oversaw the team repeat as champions in 2017. Pittsburgh, however, has won just one playoff series since and is on track to miss the playoffs for a third straight season.
“This is an organization that has enjoyed its share of success,” Sullivan added. “Lately, we’ve hit some bumps in the road. But that doesn’t deter me from wanting to do my job. Just because it gets hard, that doesn’t make you want to quit. Where we are as an organization, I don’t think it’s caught anybody by surprise. It’s an inevitable evolution. We’re doing everything in our power to try and navigate this as best we can, to be as competitive as we can as quickly as possible.
"And all I want is to help this organization win.”
Sullivan remains signed with the Penguins through the 2026-27 season after inking a three-year contract in 2022 that extended his previous deal.
The 57-year-old has a career record of 473-306-15-110 over 12 seasons as head coach, which includes a two-year stint with the Boston Bruins from 2003-2005. He recently coached Team USA to a second-place finish at the 4 Nations Face-Off, falling to Canada in the final after going a perfect 3-0 in the group round.
Currently riding a four-game winning streak, the Penguins have moved to 14th in the Eastern Conference, six points back of the New York Rangers for the final wild-card spot with one more game played.