Saturday night at PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan will become the 21st NHL coach to coach 700 games with a single franchise.
After Friday evening loss to New York RangersSullivan reached game No. 699 with the Penguins and had a record of 386-232-81.
As of 2024, he remains the only head coach to have led the Penguins to two Stanley Cup titles, winning back-to-back in 2016 and 2017.
Mike Sullivan looks back on his nearly nine years as coach of the Penguins.
By the time he was finished, his eyes were starting to feel good.
“It’s hard for me to put this into words,” Sullivan said. “I mean, this experience changed my life.”
Read it here: https://t.co/RMEkek24qm #Pens
– Wes Crosby (@OtherNHLCrosby) December 6, 2024
Interestingly, former Penguins head coach and Hall of Famer Scotty Bowman East next on the list. He led Pittsburgh to the Stanley Cup in 1992, following Bob Johnson, who guided the franchise to its first title in 1991.
Bowman coached 701 games with the Detroit Red Wings from 1993-94 to 2001-02, winning three championships with the club.
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Considering there are 54 games left in the season, Sullivan has a chance to surpass Milt Schmidt (725 games/Boston Bruins), Randy Carlyle (736 games/Anaheim Ducks), and Jacques Martin (748 games/Ottawa Senators) and claims 17th place on the all-time list.
Only 11 head coaches have reached 800 games with a single franchise, and if Sullivan returns next season, he will be able to join one of the most exclusive clubs in NHL history.
