Dubas Breaks Silence on Mike Sullivan's Future in Pittsburgh

With the Penguins missing the playoffs for the second year in a row there is plenty of blame to go around.

None of that blame should be directed at Sidney Crosby, who just recorded his 9th career season with 90 or more points.

However, some of it could be placed at the hands of Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan.

Furthermore, Sullivan has been linked to the New York Rangers since the club fired their own head coach Peter Laviolette.

With the Penguins core aging out it could make sense that the team would want to transition to a coach better suited for developing young players.

As such, perhaps New York would be a better fit for Sullivan moving forward.

But it appears as though Kyle Dubas does not agree. The Penguins general manager suggested today that he has every intention of bringing Sullivan back next season.

Dubas also effectively recommitted to making the playoffs again in the near future as he told reporters he feels better this year around.

The Penguins have seen tremendous success under Sullivan's direction, including consecutive Stanley Cup wins in 2016 and 2017. However, the team has faced challenges in recent seasons, missing the playoffs for three consecutive years from 2022-23 to 2024-25.

Notably, the Penguins averaged fewer than one point per game for the first time under Sullivan in the 2024-25 campaign.

So hopefully Dubas's 'long-term' plan means two or three years at the most, otherwise Penguins captain Crosby could very well be retired by the end of it anyways.

Given how well he played this year though, it is very possible that this won't be the last deal of his career.

He could very well play into his 40s at this rate, so who knows, maybe he will see the playoffs again in Pittsburgh.