https://www.nhl.com/penguins/news/ex...ns/c-285054554
"For Pens head coach Mike Sullivan, winning the Stanley Cup this past June was the greatest achievement of his professional career.
"For me, it ranks at the top of my list as one of the most rewarding, fulfilling experiences of my lifetime," said Sullivan, who has been a head coach and assistant coach in the NHL over the past 13 years.
But now that he's achieved that goal, where does he find the motivation to strive for a repeat of that coveted title?
"We're all in this to pursue excellence, to win a championship," he said. "I think that's why we're in it. I think that's what drives all of us when we get up and go to the rink everyday. I'm no different.
"I'm as hungry today as I was 10 years ago to try to win championships, try to excel and try to be the best at what we do. I think that's what drives each and everyone of us everyday."
Sullivan's hunger was on display during Pittsburgh's magical championship run in 2016, and it will be on display for the next several years as the Pens announced Monday afternoon that Sullivan signed a three-year contract extension that will keep him behind the team's bench through the 2019-20 season.
"It's nice to have some assurance and certainty," Sullivan said. "For (general manager) Jim (Rutherford) and (Pens CEO/president) David Morehouse to make it a priority means a lot to me. For them showing a vote of confidence in me and our coaching staff the way they have is rewarding from my standpoint."
Sullivan, 48, has been coaching in the National Hockey League since 2003 with several organizations, including the Boston Bruins, Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Rangers and Vancouver. And he appreciates working for a "first-class organization" in Pittsburgh.
"(The Pens) do things the right way. They treat people right," said Sullivan, who has also served as an assistant coach with Team USA in international play. "They do everything within their power to give the organization a chance to compete for championships. To be a part of that is exciting."
By now, everyone knows Sullivan's story. He began the 2015-16 season as head coach of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, but was promoted to Pittsburgh on Dec. 12, 2015. Sullivan took over a team that was struggling and mentally fragile. Over the course of the next six months Sullivan molded the team into a fast, resilient and dominating team that ended with the organization winning its fourth Stanley Cup championship.
"You strive your whole life to win championships," said Sullivan, a Marshfield, Massachusetts native. "Anytime you go through an experience like that you learn a lot about yourself and the people around you. You feel sometimes as though you have what it takes to get the job done. Until you actually go through it and get it done, you don't know for sure. We all find a level of personal satisfaction in knowing that we've made the ultimate commitment and sacrifices to try to win the Stanley Cup."
The Pens' turnaround was nothing short of magical. Pittsburgh went 33-12-5 in its last 50 games and 14-2 in its last 16 of the regular season while unleashing one of the nastiest offenses in the NHL, led by the point productions of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang.
But Sullivan's greatest accomplishment came from instilling a sense of resolve into a team that was mentally frail. One of his tactics was telling the players to ignore the negative noise surrounding the team, ignore the negative circumstances and "just play," a catchphrase that the team adopted and proudly wore on their playoff T-shirts during the incredible 16-8 postseason run to a championship title.
"From my experience being around this game is that the teams that have success or the players that have success down to a man are the people that learn how to respond the right way (to adversity)," Sullivan said. "The way it evolved with some of the vocabulary that I used was let's just play. We can't control certain things that go on out there and maybe don't go our way. We've got to react the right way. Let's just drop the puck, line up and play."
Sullivan, himself, showed a strong resolve when the Pens struggled early under his guidance, losing their first four contests, until they found their way. And it was his example from which the team fed.
"Talk is easy. It's through your living, breathing example that's most powerful," he said. "Whatever the message that leaders preach they certainly have to walk the walk. I felt strongly that I had to do the same."
With Sullivan setting the example, the leadership group in the Pens room soon following suit and it trickled down throughout the entire team.
"That's what makes me most proud of these guys and this group, is how well they responded to the challenges this team faced," he said. "I don't know that there was another team in the league that went through more adversity than this Pittsburgh Penguins team.
"We look towards these guys as inspiration to continue moving forward. They're a privilege to coach. We push them hard because we believe in them and we think they're capable of great things."
The Pens are already accomplishing great things during the young 2016-17 campaign. Pittsburgh has a 22-8-5 record which ranks second overall in the entire NHL, a single point behind Columbus.
With the Pens returning almost nearly everyone from last season's championship team there are high hopes for a repeat. Sullivan has embraced that pressure.
"I think of that saying, 'To whom much is given much is expected in return,'" Sullivan said. "We have very high expectations as an organization. … This is a new season with a whole new set of challenges.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity I've been given here, and I look forward to challenges ahead.""
Sullivan Gets Three-Year Contract Extension
https://www.nhl.com/penguins/news/mi...ct/c-285051068
"Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan has signed a three-year contract extension through the 2019-20 season, it was announced today by executive vice president and general manager Jim Rutherford.
"Mike did the best coaching job in the NHL last season," Rutherford said. "He continues to be a terrific coach and we are happy to give him a well-deserved extension."
Since taking over a Penguins' team that sat outside of a playoff spot when he was hired on Dec. 12, 2015, the 48-year old Sullivan has:
*Guided his club to the franchise's fourth Stanley Cup championship last spring.
*Helped author one of the best in-season turnarounds in franchise history, directing the Penguins to a 33-16-5 finish after taking over last year.
*Made sure his team hasn't suffered a Cup hangover thus far this year, as the Penguins currently own the NHL's second-best record, one point shy of league-leading Columbus.
A native of Marshfield, Massachusetts, Sullivan transformed the Penguins' identity in his first season behind the bench, instilling the motto 'Just Play' into his players. The result was his club posting the league's second-best record and becoming its highest-scoring outfit from the day of his hiring until the end of the season.
That turnaround not only catapulted Pittsburgh to the NHL's fourth-best overall record last year, but it served as the springboard to a dominant playoff performance after the Penguins won eight of their last nine, and 14 of their final 16 games entering the postseason.
By going on to win the Stanley Cup, Sullivan became just the sixth American-born head coach in NHL history to guide his club to a championship, and only the fourth coach to win after taking over at midseason.
Sullivan's Penguins went 16-8 during their magical ride through the playoff field, equaling the franchise record for home playoff wins with nine, while playing with a dramatic flair that included a team-record four overtime victories.
This season, Sullivan has the Penguins sitting at 22-8-5, which has them in the thick of the race for the Metropolitan Division title, a feat made even more impressive when considering that five of the NHL's top-eight teams right now reside within the Metro Division.
Overall, Sullivan is 55-24-10 behind the Penguins' bench. Only the Washington Capitals have accumulated more points (124 to 120) among NHL teams during that span.
Two early trademarks of Sullivan's teams are the ability to come back from multi-goal deficits, and they have been nearly impossible to beat in consecutive regulation games.
Incredibly, the Penguins have recorded 14 of their 55 wins (25%) under Sullivan when trailing by two or more goals at any point within that contest. This season, the Penguins own the NHL's best winning percentage when trailing after both the first and second periods.
Since dropping the first four games of Sullivan's tenure in regulation, the Penguins have a streak of 85 consecutive games played without back-to-back regulation losses. That number swells to 109 if you factor in the playoffs.
One of the keys to Sullivan's success has been giving his superstars the offensive freedom to display their talents.
Sidney Crosby leads all NHL players in both goals (54) and points (104) in 81 games played since Sullivan's arrival.
Crosby (1st, 1.28), Evgeni Malkin (3rd, 1.11) and Kris Letang (6th, 1.01) all rank among the NHL points per game leaders during that same time span.
Rutherford promoted Sullivan to head coach in Pittsburgh last year following an 18-5 start to Sullivan's first year behind the bench of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, Pittsburgh's top farm club.
The year before joining the Pittsburgh organization, Sullivan earned a Stanley Cup ring with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2014-15, serving as a player development coach.
Sullivan began his NHL head coaching career with the Boston Bruins from 2003-06, winning a division title his first year. He later spent seven straight years as an NHL assistant coach with Tampa Bay, the New York Rangers and Vancouver from 2007-14.
Sullivan has coached for Team USA several times at the international level, including serving as an assistant coach at this year's World Cup and in the 2006 Olympics, and he was the head coach of the 2006 World Championship team.
Before beginning his coaching career, Sullivan skated in 709 NHL games over 11 seasons, totaling 54 goals and 136 points."
