(Pittsburgh) Mike Sullivan has been named head coach of the American team which will participate in the 4 Nations Showdown in 2025 and the 2026 Olympic Games.
USA Hockey announced the news on Saturday.
Sullivan, who is 56, will coach the United States for the fifth time. He was an assistant coach during the 2006 Olympic Games. He then served as head coach in 2007 at the World Championships, then assistant coach at the World Championships in 2008 and at the 2016 World Cup. He was to lead the American team at the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing, but he withdrew when NHL players decided not to participate.
The 4 Nations Showdown is a new international competition organized by the NHL. It will pit players from the United States, Canada, Finland and Sweden against each other and will be presented from February 12 to 20, 2025.
The 2026 Olympic Games will take place from February 6 to 22, 2026 in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.
Sullivan has been the head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins since 2015, when he was promoted mid-season. He then guided the Penguins to the Stanley Cup championship in 2016 and 2017.
Sullivan has a record of 445-275-115 as an NHL head coach with the Penguins and Boston Bruins. He is one of only three American coaches to have more than 400 victories on his record, along with John Tortorella and Peter Laviolette.