Sullivan began coaching professional hockey during the 2002–2003 season, when he became the head coach of the Providence Bruins of the AHL. In his only season, his team had a 41–17–9–4 record. Sullivan was hired as the 26th head coach of the Boston Bruins in 2003 by then-general manager Mike O'Connell. His first season with the Bruins was highly successful, as he led them to a 41–19–15–7 record, 104 points and a first-place finish in the Northeast Division. However, they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Montreal Canadiens. After the lockout, Sullivan and the Bruins struggled to win in the new NHL, as they ended the 2005–2006 season with a dismal 29–37–16 record, missing the playoffs and finishing last in the Northeast Division. He was subsequently fired by incoming general managerPeter Chiarelli on June 27, 2006, and was replaced by Dave Lewis. Sullivan served as an assistant coach of the U.S. Olympic hockey team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. On May 31, 2007, he was named assistant coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning. On July 16, 2009, he was named assistant coach of the New York Rangers. On July 3, 2013, he was named assistant coach of the Vancouver Canucks. On January 20, 2014, Sullivan was named interim head coach of the Canucks, while head coach John Tortorella served a six-game suspension. On January 21, in his first game as acting head coach, the Canucks would go on to record a 2–1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers. On May 1, 2014, Sullivan, along with head coach John Tortorella, were relieved of their respective duties in the Canucks organization. Sullivan subsequently joined the Chicago Blackhawks as a player development coach. On June 18, 2015, the Pittsburgh Penguins named Sullivan as the new head coach of their American Hockey League affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He was named head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins on December 12, 2015, upon the firing of then-head coach Mike Johnston. On June 12, 2016, Sullivan became just the sixth head coach in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup after being hired mid-season. He did so when the Penguins defeated the San Jose Sharks in the 2016 Stanley Cup Final. Sullivan joined both Scotty Bowman and Dan Bylsma as the third coach in franchise history to win the Stanley Cup following a mid-season coaching change. Sullivan is also the first coach to lead the Penguins to multiple Stanley Cup championships with their victory over the Nashville Predators in the 2017 Stanley Cup Final. On December 16, 2017, he recorded his 100th career win with the Penguins becoming just the fourth coach to do so for the organization. On July 5, 2019, Sullivan signed a four-year contract extension.
Personal life
Sullivan and his wife, Kate, have three children, daughters Kaitlin and Kiley and son Matthew.
