With the Pittsburgh Penguins under-performing this season, the brass decided a coaching change was in order and fired Mike Johnston.
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The last time the Penguins promoted their AHL coach was 2009.
Pittsburgh Penguins’ Mike Johnston, left, listens to assistant coach Rick Tocchet as he gives instructions during an NHL hockey game against the Los Angeles Kings in Pittsburgh Friday, Dec. 11, 2015.
General manager Jim Rutherford says that Mike Sullivan will take over as head coach.
He will get his start as Penguins coach when the Washington Capitals pay a visit on Monday.
Sullivan, a United States assistant coach at the 2006 Winter Olympics, was 70-56 with 31 overtime defeats in two seasons behind the Boston bench.
“Mike Sullivan has been a head coach and an assistant coach in the National Hockey League and we’ve been very fortunate to have him”.
“Our expectations are much higher for this group of players”, Rutherford said in a statement posted on the team website.
The struggles have been headline worthy with Crosby off to the slowest start of his career and the lack of scoring from Kessel (who will certainly not be jokingly called a coach killer again) in his first year with Pittsburgh. “He’s done an outstanding job in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and he’s ready to step in.”.
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The Penguins slipped into the Stanley Cup playoffs last season, needing a win against the Buffalo Sabres on the final day of the regular season to secure the second wild card in the Eastern Conference. He only has six goals in 28 games.
