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NHL Coach Rankings: At No. 6, Stanley Cup Champion Faces Different Challenge With Rangers
Adam Proteaufeatured
5hUpdated Jul 27, 2026, 18:02
A two-time Stanley Cup champion and Olympic gold medallist couldn’t help his new squad bounce back from a freefall in the standings. Can Mike Sullivan do it in 2026-27?
New York Rangers bench boss Mike Sullivan is one of hockey’s most accomplished coaches
He’s won championships with star-studded squads, but his job with the Rangers is a bit different
Although he’s being tasked with turning around an Original Six team with many holes, Sullivan’s competitive pedigree gives him and the squad the confidence needed to take on the challenge
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TheHockeyNews.com continues to rank NHL coaches in reverse order. The criteria include each coach’s reputation, expectations, and short– and long-term impact
Check out the full ranking to date below. But first, it’s time to spotlight Sullivan
Sullivan is a two-time Stanley Cup champion dating back to his time coaching the Pittsburgh Penguins. He’s led his teams to eight playoff appearances since 2003-04, when he was in his first year coaching the Boston Bruins
He’d be higher on this list, but in recent years, he’s had a difficult time getting his team into the post-season
Sullivan last made the post-season in 2021-22 with the Penguins, which missed the playoffs in three straight years before the coach departed for the Rangers. In his first year with the Blueshirts, the team failed to climb the standings and began a retool
While Sullivan deserves some criticism for the struggles of the Penguins and Rangers, he is one of the most respected coaches in the game
With 999 career regular-season games coached, Sullivan ranks 33rd in NHL history in that category. He’s expected to rise to 27th if he makes it through the 2026-27 season
Sullivan also ranks 28th all-time and ninth among active coaches for most career wins, with 513. His staying power is a factor in Sullivan’s place on this list
The American’s role on the international squad also grew over the past couple of years. He led Team USA to second place in the 4 Nations Face-Off and, much more importantly, first place in the 2026 Olympics
thehockeynews.comMike Sullivan Played Key Role in Marcus Pettersson Waiving No-Movement ClauseWhile Marcus Pettersson may not be familiar with the New York Rangers, he is familiar with their head coach.
In 2026-27, Sullivan will be challenged to steer the Blueshirts back into a playoff spot, even while the squad retools
Rangers GM Chris Drury has made multiple additions, including left winger Pavel Dorofeyev, veteran Oliver Bjorkstrand and defensemen Sean Durzi and Marcus Pettersson. Despite trading center Vincent Trocheck in the process, there’s every reason to believe the Rangers will push for a playoff spot in the relatively weak Metropolitan Division rather than hope for a high draft pick.
Sullivan isn’t in any imminent danger of losing his job, unless the Rangers’ season gets real ugly and Drury is fired, leaving his replacement to possibly change coaches. But you’d better believe Sullivan would almost instantly be snapped up by a team that wants his playoff pedigree on their team
The Rangers are trying to transition out of the Artemi Panarin Era, and they’re entrusting their players to Sullivan
As we saw in the Olympics, Sullivan can have high-stakes success if his group is talented enough. The Rangers, unfortunately, don’t have that type of skill and depth. That’s not a reflection on Sullivan, but if he can unlock a new level from his players, he can gain even more respect
The ‘26-27 campaign will be very important for Sullivan and the Rangers. The Metro has a top team in the Carolina Hurricanes, but after that, there’s no guarantee any Metro team will make the playoffs. So the Rangers must take advantage of the opportunity in front of them
It’s already been more than a decade since Sullivan won his first Cup. And while shepherding the Rangers to a championship is a tall task for Sullivan, he currently has the job security necessary to push his players as far as they’ll allow.
thehockeynews.comNHL Coach Rankings: St-Louis At No. 7, The Genius Behind The Canadiens’ GrowthContinuing along with the ranking of the NHL’s 32 head coaches, we’re focused on the up-and-comer coach who comes in at No. 7 on this list – Montreal Canadiens coach Martin St-Louis.
7. Martin St-Louis, Montreal
8. Rick Tocchet, Philadelphia
9. Spencer Carbery, Washington
10. Peter DeBoer, NY Islanders
11. John Hynes, Minnesota
12. Lindy Ruff, Buffalo
13. Dan Muse, Pittsburgh
14. Rick Bowness, Columbus
15. Peter Laviolette, Los Angeles
16. Jim Montgomery, St. Louis
17. Todd McLellan, Detroit
18. Marco Sturm, Boston
19. Sheldon Keefe, New Jersey
20. Scott Arniel, Winnipeg
21. Travis Green, Ottawa
22. Glen Gulutzan, Dallas
23. Andre Tourigny, Utah
24. Jim Hiller, Toronto
25. Ryan Warsofsky, San Jose
26. Manny Malhotra, Vancouver
27. Ryan Huska, Calgary
28. Mike Babcock, Edmonton
29. Andrew Brunette, Nashville
30. Ryan Craig, Vegas
31. Lane Lambert, Seattle
32. Jeff Blashill, Chicago
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