“We are grateful to Todd for his dedication and commitment to the Penguins over two separate stints with the organization,” Penguins GM Kyle Dubas said in the statement released by the organization on May 3. “Mike Sullivan and I agree that this change was in the best interest of the team moving forward.”
Will This Decision Lead to Mike Sullivan’s Exit from Pittsburgh?
More than a few people seemed to be surprised by the decision and noted Dubas made sure to mention a mutual agreement between him and Sullivan when it came to parting ways with the assistant coach, whose deal expired at the end of the regular season.
Truth be told, Reirden has had a tough spell in Pittsburgh this season, with many fans calling for his firing before the team’s failure to clinch a postseason berth. That’s mostly due to the Penguins’ atrocious power-play unit, one led by Reirden.
This season, Pittsburgh ranked a putrid 31st in the NHL on the power play and allowed the team also allowed most shorthanded goals across the NHL.
That unit, for context, featured Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and Erik Karlsson, all of them widely reputed players and NHL superstars. Despite that, the unit was largely inconsistent as their end-of-season rank proved.
Todd Reirden isn’t coming back. On what it all means, how it went down, and what to expect next: https://t.co/eQ5qNajn0m
— Josh Yohe (@JoshYohe_PGH) May 3, 2024
The Athletic’s Josh Yohe reported the news on May 3, calling all reports about a riff between Dubas and Sullivan “laughably false” in his story.
“There’s no rift between Sullivan and Dubas. It’s been reported elsewhere that there is. Those reports are laughably false,” Yohe wrote. “Perhaps they didn’t agree on the Reirden decision. That’s quite possible. But I assure you they have a very good working relationship and are very much on the same page.
“Anything else that you read is utterly untrue.”
General Manager Kyle Dubas Under Scrutiny
Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas was hired by the organization on June 1, 2023, and he’s yet to complete his first year reigning over Pittsburgh. That, however, doesn’t mean he’s not already facing criticism and getting his decision tracked as closely as possible.
Dubas didn’t answer questions about personnel decisions in the team’s exit interviews after the regular season.
Head coach Mike Sullivan will have a contract extension kicking off next season and spanning three seasons, which should be enough to keep him in the position he currently occupies as the leader of the Penguins.
It’s worth noting that Sullivan has been the head coach of Pittsburgh since June 2015 and that he led his team to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2016 and 2017 along with franchise legend and future Hall of Famer Sidney Crosby.
Speaking of Crosby, that’s the other pressing topic Dubas will need to deal with until his contract runs out in July 2025, assuming he gets there.
As Heavy reported in late April, there had not been “any formal negotiations” between Crosby’s agent and the Penguins then. The belief among industry insiders, however, is that both parties are interested in extending their relationship until Crosby decides to retire.