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Mike Sullivan's run with the Pittsburgh Penguins ended Monday. Sullivan was fired by the team after going 34-36 during the 2024-25 NHL season, the Penguins announced.

In a statement, Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas thanked Sullivan for his contributions, saying he will "forever be an enormous part of Penguins history."

“On behalf of Fenway Sports Group and the Penguins organization, I would like to thank Mike Sullivan for his unwavering commitment and loyalty to the team and City of Pittsburgh over the past decade,” said Dubas. “Mike is known for his preparation, focus and fierce competitiveness. I was fortunate to have a front-row seat to his dedication to this franchise for the past two seasons. He will forever be an enormous part of Penguins history, not only for the impressive back-to-back Cups, his impact on the core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Bryan Rust, but more importantly, for his love and loyalty to the organization. This was not a decision that was taken lightly, but as we continue to navigate the Penguins through this transitional period, we felt it was the best course forward for all involved.”

Sullivan was under contract with the team through the 2026-27 NHL season. The Penguins will begin searching for his replacement immediately, per its statement.

The decision ends a fantastic run by Sullivan, who was hired by the franchise during the 2015-16 season after it fired Mike Johnston. In Sullivan's first year with the team, the Penguins won the Stanley Cup. They did it again the following year, giving Sullivan two championships in his first two seasons with the franchise.

The Penguins continued to excel over the next five seasons. During that period, the team went 214-119, making the playoffs every year. Despite the club's success, the Penguins faltered in the playoffs, reaching the second round just once. 

The Penguins finished above .500 in both the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, but failed to make the postseason. The team then went 34-36 in 2024-25. It was the first time during Sullivan's tenure that the club finished under .500.

Sullivan's tenure with the Penguins ends with 409 wins, making him the winningest head coach in franchise history. He posted a .602 winning percentage in Pittsburgh.

Given that winning percentage, and the fact that he is a two-time champion, Sullivan should draw plenty of interest from teams looking for new coaches this offseason.

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Long-time NHL executive and Stanley Cup winning general manager Ray Shero has died, the league announced Wednesday. He was 62.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman announced the news in a statement Wednesday, calling Shero a "widely respected" mind who "brightened the day of everyone he met."

“Ray Shero’s smile and personality lit up every room he walked into and brightened the day of everyone he met. Widely respected throughout hockey for his team-building acumen and eye for talent, he was even more beloved for how he treated everyone fortunate enough to have known him."

Shero spent three decades working in NHL front offices. He was a long-time assistant general manager with the Ottawa Senators and Nashville Predators early in his career. Shero worked his way up from there, eventually being hired as the Pittsburgh Penguins' general manager in 2006. He excelled with the team, making the playoffs in every year in which he oversaw the Penguins. 

After watching the team fall short for two years, Shero won a Stanley Cup championship with the Penguins during the 2008-09 NHL season. While the team continued to make the playoffs, it developed a reputation for being dispatched by lower-seeded opponents. That led to Shero being fired following the 2013-14 season, when the Penguins fell to the New York Rangers in the second round of the playoffs. 

Shero was then hired by the New Jersey Devils. The team struggled to improve, making the playoffs just once with Shero running things. He was fired in 2020 and did not get another general manager job in the league.

After leaving the Devils, Shero worked as a senior advisor to the general manager with the Minnesota Wild. The Wild also paid tribute to Shero on Wednesday, saying Shero will be "greatly missed by all of us."

When Alex Ovechkin sets the NHL's all-time goal scoring record, "The Great One" will be there. Wayne Gretzky will be part of a traveling caravan that will attend every Washington Capitals game until Ovechkin breaks the record, according to Chris Johnston of The Athletic.

Gretzky will be joined by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, as well as other league personnel, starting Wednesday, when the Capitals take on the Carolina Hurricanes. Bettman, Gretzky and Ovechkin's wife Nastya will then attend every single remaining Capitals game until the record is broken. 

Ovechkin scored his 891st career goal in a 4-3 win over the Boston Bruins on Tuesday. With the goal, Ovechkin sits three away from tying Gretzky, and four away from breaking Gretzky's record. 

Including Wednesday's game, Ovechkin has eight games left to break the record. The Capitals will alternate between home and away games until the final two games of the season, which will be played on the road. 

If Ovechkin breaks the record, the league will allow Capitals players to leave the bench and celebrate with him. There will also be a formal celebration and ceremony that will halt the game, per The Athletic. It doesn't matter how much time is left in the contest, or if it has playoff implications, the league will halt play to celebrate Ovechkin's record-breaking goal.

That approach is the same one the league took when Gretzky broke Gordie Howe's record in 1994. The NHL halted the game for a 15-minute ceremony honoring Gretzky's achievement. Howe and Bettman were in attendance when Gretzky set the goal scoring record.

In addition to the traveling caravan, the NHL announced Tuesday it will have a camera dedicated to following Ovechkin during the remainder of his games this season. Roughly 10 additional cameras will be at each Capitals game to provide more angles and footage of the historic goal, per The Athletic.

Ovechkin, 39, was an immediate star as a rookie after the Capitals selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 NHL Draft. During his 20-year career — all of which has come with the Capitals — Ovechkin is a 12-time All-Star, and three-time Hart Memorial Trophy winner. He also led the Capitals to their first-ever Stanley Cup championship in 2018.

Given his age, there were questions about whether Ovechkin would approach Gretzky's record during the 2024-25 season. But the Capitals great stepped up his game in a major way. After scoring 31 goals in 79 games last year, Ovechkin already has 38 goals in just 58 games this season.

The Philadelphia Flyers reached the final straw with head coach John Tortorella. The long-time NHL coach was fired Thursday after saying he was "not really interested in learning how to coach in this type of season."

The team confirmed the news, though made no mention of Tortorella's comments in the press release.

Tortorella went 97-107-33 in three seasons with the Flyers. Associate coach Brad Shaw will take over as the team's interim head coach moving forward.

Tortorella's firing comes after the Flyers fell 7-2 to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday. It was Philadelphia's sixth straight loss.

Following the contest, Tortorella drew criticism by implying he had no interest in coaching the team.

"When you're in this type of situation and you're losing all the time, and there's nothing at the end of the tunnel for you, there's certainly going to be some frustration. But, this falls on me. I'm not really interested in learning how to coach in this type of season, where we're at right now. But I have to do a better job. So this falls on me, getting the team prepared to play the proper way until we get to the end."

Some interpreted those comments as Tortorella trying to take the blame off his players. Others viewed it as Tortorella raising the white flag. 

At 28-36-9, the Flyers rank ninth in the Eastern Conference. The team hasn't been officially eliminated from the postseason yet, though that will likely happen soon.

John Tortorella struggled to turn Flyers around

Tortorella was hired by the Flyers ahead of the 2022-23 NHL season. The team was coming off an eighth-place finish in the Metropolitan Division. The Flyers showed slight improvement in Tortorella's first year, improving to 31 wins.

Things looked more promising in his second season, as the team turned in a 38-33-11 record. Despite finishing the year over .500, the Flyers failed to make it to the postseason.

The team failed to capitalize on that improvement this year, and sat at .500 at the trade deadline. Instead of making additions, the Flyers shipped out three players. The team went into a tailspin after the deadline, going just 1-10 in its next 11 games. 

Prior to coaching the Flyers, Tortorella coached the Columbus Blue Jackets, Vancouver Canucks, New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning. He led the Lightning to a Stanley Cup championship during the 2003-04 NHL season.