Rangers GM Chris Drury makes his feelings known on Mike Sullivan reunion

The New York Rangers have named Mike Sullivan their new head coach and the 38th head coach in franchise history.

Sullivan parted ways with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and the Rangers moved quickly to hire the two-time Stanley Cup-winning head coach.

Rangers general manager Chris Drury felt like Sullivan made the most sense to be the team’s next head coach. He is also confident Sullivan would help turn around the team.

“Mike Sullivan has established himself as one of the premier head coaches in the NHL,” Drury said in a statement. “Given his numerous accomplishments throughout his coaching career – including two Stanley Cups and leading Team USA at the international level – Mike brings a championship-level presence behind the bench.

“I’ve gotten to know Mike very well over the years, including as teammates in the 1997 World Championships, when he coached me as a player in New York and through our shared time working together with USA Hockey. As we began this process and Mike became an available option for us to speak with, it was immediately clear that he was the best coach to lead our team.”

Sullivan was an assistant coach with the Rangers from 2009 until 2013.

Sullivan will now be the head coach of his third NHL team. He was first a head coach with the Boston Bruins in 2003, lasting two seasons. He then took over as the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2015, winning the Stanley Cup in his first two seasons.

The Rangers failed to make the playoffs last season, finishing the season with a record of 39-36-7.

Rangers owner excited to welcome back Mike Sullivan

Mike Sullivan is considered to be one of the best coaches in the NHL, and the Rangers are thrilled to hire him.

After the hiring was made official, Rangers owner James Dolan said he’s excited to see Sullivan behind the bench and help New York become a Stanley Cup contender.

“I would like to welcome Mike back to the Rangers organization,” said James L. Dolan, MSG Executive Chairman and CEO. “Mike’s track record and success in the NHL and internationally speaks for itself, and I look forward to seeing him behind the Rangers bench.”

Sullivan has gone 479-311-15-112 as a head coach in the NHL. He was the coach of the Penguins for 10 seasons, but after Pittsburgh failed to make the playoffs in three straight years, the team decided to move on.

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alt=”Cole Shelton” height=”72″ width=”72″>

Cole is an NHL, NFL and College Sports reporter at Sportskeeda with over 7 years of experience writing for publications like CBC, USA Today, SMG, BJPENN, Sherdog and SB Nation.

An NHL fan his whole life, Cole played rep hockey in Canada from age 5 until 17 and grew up rooting for Martin St. Louis and the Tampa Bay Lightning. His all-time favorite players are Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, while Jon Cooper is his favorite coach of all time.

Cole attended Sheridan College and received his journalism degree in 2019. After decades of watching and reporting, he considers his knowledge of sports as his primary strength. He ensures that the same story has been reported by at least two reputed reporters before creating it.

Cole enjoys playing golf and spending time with friends and family when not reporting breaking stories. His favorite sports moment is from the 2010 Olympics, when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime to beat Team USA for the gold medal.

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Edited by Cole Shelton