#Mike Sullivan

[intheupside]

sully the coach meets sully the penguin

[hunterrrs]

sully said my babygirl is the best in the world <3

[sportsthoughts]

Day 138 of offseason gifs - In The Room S06E08 - celebrating the 2017 Stanley Cup

[christadeguchi]

sully’s 400th win gift 🎂

[cyarskj52]

he’s such a dweeb! “we’re just going to do some shots of you looking cool. looking tough.” “you know what i don’t even know if i want to see it now.”

[stuckinnet]

we’re going to yap our way to a fourth cup aren’t we

[ehghtyseven]

"let's get excited!"

and tanger took that personally

[goaliekisses]

oh 🥺

and flower was there too:

The Pittsburgh Penguins are supposed to be home with their families now, getting some rest following a 10-day road trip, preparing for the Canucks at PPG Paints Arena on Tuesday.

They are not.

Instead, they traveled through the middle of the night to Montreal, arriving at 4 a.m. Then, they slept for a brief period of time before attending the funeral of Claude Fouquet, father of Kris Letang.

While the Penguins were on the Western swing of the road trip that took them through Las Vegas and Phoenix, some of the team’s veterans came together with the coaching staff to discuss a mutual desire to attend Fouquet’s funeral in Quebec.

Mike Sullivan was not only on board with the plan but was one of the people who spearheaded the decision.

The Penguins were then set to return home later today, where they won’t have much time to prepare for Tuesday’s game.

But then, for this group, taking care of teammates is more important than obtaining a certain amount of rest before a game.

This is a particularly vivid illustration of how much Letang means to everyone on this team.

“Such a good kid,” former general manager Jim Rutherford said. “He really is. Life seems to hit him harder than most. But he’s tough. He’ll be OK.”

In case Letang needed their support, his teammates made the decision to sacrifice time with their families to be with him in Montreal.

It wasn’t an easy logistical matter for the organization. A high-ranking member of the Penguins’ front office had to fly to Phoenix on Sunday with a box of necessities: the Penguins’ passports. Their road trip had taken them to Boston, Las Vegas and Phoenix. To enter Canada, however, passports are required.

So, with the documents in hand following Sunday’s game, the Penguins ultimately made the decision to attend the funeral. It wasn’t a choice that came lightly. The Penguins had to consider that funerals are private, emotionally charged experiences. They wanted to be there, yes, but they also wanted to respect the privacy of Letang and his family.

Letang has been teammates with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin since 2006. For 17 years, these three players have been the foundation of the mighty Penguins and, along the way, it’s become clear the friendship these three share is even more powerful than the on-ice magic they still regularly showcase.

They are best friends. When Crosby was honored for playing in 1,000 career NHL games a couple of years back, he remained composed during the ceremony.

Then, the faces of Letang and Malkin flashed on the scoreboard, with each delivering a message. Suddenly, the tears flowed from Crosby’s face.

These are franchise icons, the three players most responsible for a magical time in Pittsburgh sports history. Along the way, they’ve become so close that the idea of playing for any other franchise last summer suddenly seemed absurd. They were brothers for life, on and off the ice.

There were tears in Montreal today, too.

But I’d bet, in what is a horribly sad day for Letang and his family, that the defenseman who has been through so much this season felt a little better, a little more supported, a little more loved and a little more at ease knowing Crosby and Malkin — along with 20 other teammates — were on hand.

Good for the Penguins. Good for ownership for handling the finances of this move. Good for Sullivan and his staff for putting the love of a teammate before previous plans. Good for the players who pushed to be there for their brother.

Good for Letang, too. He lives his life the right way, which is why he is so beloved in that locker room. He lost a member of his family that he loved, and that is a terribly difficult thing to overcome.

But he was surrounded by family in Montreal on Monday. A couple dozen weren’t blood relatives, but are family nonetheless.

from the athletic

[badangle]

he’s pretty, petty and he believes in love. he’ll fit right in.

[maljic]

i feel v chastised on their behalf

[intheupside]

Sullivan can’t be blamed if he feels isolated or needs a fresh start. Sullivan, however, is immensely loyal.

That brings us to the reason he won’t leave.

When the Penguins hired Sullivan nearly nine years ago, his very first course of action was to schedule meetings with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang. That night, before the meetings, Sullivan walked to a restaurant looking for dinner. Upon walking into Butcher and the Rye, the first people he saw were Crosby and Letang.

They formed a bond that night, and it has never died.

About 18 months ago, Letang looked me in the eye and said, “Me, Sid, and Geno? We don’t want any other coach. Only him.”

Sullivan feels the same about those three.

You could argue that Crosby, Malkin and Letang saved Sullivan’s career.

Then again, you could argue he saved theirs, too.

this is almost romantic. from the athletic.

[hunterrrs]

“he probably doesn’t get the credit that he deserves for what he’s done over his career”… turning geno pink and making his geno face while he gushes over geno… he’s just like us

[sportsthoughts]

Day 145 of offseason gifs - In The Room S07E01 - the Pens put a ring on it (again)

[annieqattheperipheral]

bts from that upcoming disney show epi featuring pens

edit post-airing: big city greens

[cyarskj52]

aged like fine wine

[goaliekisses]

“sullivan in the ear of crosby”