It is getting more and more embarrassing as the season goes on. The players are not listening, they are screwing up basic things like line changes, and they are playing like they want a new coach. But the Penguins ownership group, Fenway Sports Group, will not let GM Kyle Dubas make the move.
It is insanely frustrating to watch this team play flat almost every game, lose to teams they should not lose to, and just watch them just break down so easily in the defensive zone.
It is way past Mike Sullivan's expiration date.
The Penguins organization and their fans will always be grateful for Mike Sullivan
It is way past time for the Penguins to move on and fire Mike Sullivan. But their fans and the organization will always be grateful for what he has accomplished, when they finally decide to make the move.
It’s over. Time to say goodbye to Mike Sullivan. Best coach in Penguins history. 2 Cups. But it’s over. Turn the page. pic.twitter.com/TNpcqjOw48
— Andrew Fillipponi (@ThePoniExpress) November 16, 2024
As referenced by Pittsburgh reporter Andrew Fillipponi, he agrees that it is finally time to move on. Sullivan brought the team back-to-back Stanley Cup Championships in 2016 and 2017. Along with several more postseason appearances.
But if the season continues to go downhill, the Penguins will not have made the playoffs, especially under Sullivan, for a third straight year. Sullivan also has not won a playoff series since 2018.
If Sullivan coached anywhere else, they would have fired him already
It definitely seems like if Sullivan was the coach of another team, had the recent track record that he has, and the season was going this poorly, that he would have been fired already.
But for whatever reason, that has not been the case here in Pittsburgh. They refuse to fire him and think he can be the one to lead the soon-to-be inevitable rebuild. The team refuses to commit to a rebuild yet with Crosby and Malkin and Letang still on the roster, but they think Sullivan is the right coach to lead it.
It is way past father time and it is concerning to think about how much more it is going to take to fire the guy. The Penguins need a new voice and Sullivan is not that voice.