The 2025-26 season for the New York Rangers will forever go down in National Hockey League history as the year that started the Mike Sullivan era for Rangers hockey.
After announcing the firing of Peter Laviolette on April 19, the Rangers officially named his replacement to be Sullivan. He was previously an assistant coach under John Tortorella from 2009 to 2013 for the Blueshirts. His hiring was made official on May 2 after being the head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins for 10 seasons. It's the hope that the hiring of Sullivan will bring back a Stanley Cup to Madison Square Garden, it helps he won back-to-back cups in 2015-16 and 2016-17, and in the process, he became just the second head coach in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup in each of his first two seasons with a team.
But with Sullivan now being the 38th head coach in Blueshirts history, what sets him a part from the other 37 in terms of coaching style?
Sullivan's Coaching Style
Sullivan's coaching style is characterized by a high-pressure, aggressive and fast-paced approach. He emphasizes a relentless forecheck for his forwards, pushing opponents along the walls with speed as well as forcing turnovers. This will require the players on the Rangers' roster to jump cuts and swarm the puck relentlessly.
His coaching style also involves a strong emphasis on defensive structure and a straight-ahead offensive system, allowing players to utilize their individual judgment in creating their own opportunities.
“The sign of a good coach, to me, is when the star players are playing super hard,” fellow-two-time Stanley Cup winner Jon Cooper told The Athletic. “Sully got his star players in Pittsburgh to play hard, even years into his time there. For me, that’s a great sign. The other sign is: Does the team look disorganized at all? Do they look like they’ve gotten the message from the coach on how to play? And his teams have always looked like they knew what was going on.
“Those things sound easy to do, but they’re not.”
So, which players will relish under Sullivan's coaching demands?
2. J.T. Miller
Miller was fantastic for the Rangers after he was acquired from Vancouver. As a Blueshirt, he had 13 goals and 22 assists for 35 points in 32 games, which was the second-most behind Artemi Panarin in that time frame.
"[Sullivan is] a great person," Miller said to NHL.com. "I think it's obviously a little looser there than it would be over an 82-game schedule, but he's a great guy. I haven't heard a single bad thing about him. On the coaching front, I just have the utmost respect for him, his resume, his career and what he's been able to accomplish.
"I'm really looking forward to working with him. I have so much respect for what he's done in this game. I think it'll be a good fit."
Basically, he's got the fight that Sullivan looks for in his players. Not to mention — Miller has the ability to demonstrate his fair share of aggression as well.