NHL Insider reveals New York Rangers Chris Drury's shocking plan for Mike Sullivan's hiring

Sullivan's connection to Drury runs quite deep which includes Team USA and a previous attempt to hire him as bench boss when the Rangers fired David Quinn.

Drury had hope that Sullivan or Carolina's head coach Rob Brind'Amour would become available after Quinn's dismissal as Brind'Amour contract was coming up for renewal and there was a sense that he wanted to move.

Sullivan also had contract discussions as he had been quite successful with the Penguins winning back-to-back Stanley cups. After both coaches declined the offer from Drury, he went head and hired Gerald Gallant.

The Rangers have had a coaching controversy over the past several years as they have gone through three coaches in the last four years with varying levels of success as Laviolette took the Rangers to the Eastern Conference finals last year and just coming up short against the Florida Panthers.

It was revealed that Sullivan signed a five-year contract with the Rangers with his price tag unknown, it was reported that he is now «the highest annual salary for a coach in NHL history.»

This will be the second time Sullivan will be on the Rangers bench as he was an assistant coach for the team in 2009.

This is the first step in many steps to come from the Rangers organization who are preparing the team for a likely remodel of the lineup as well as the coaching staff on the bench.

Many fans hope that Sullivan's style that he will bring to the bench will align well with the Rangers on the ice as many critics have mentioned the Rangers lacked soul and heart this year which helped lead to their downfall.

Many questions remain with the organization as the first major decision is over and now the team will switch to further evaluation and the NHL draft.

Source: The Hockey News
The Rangers' Hiring Of Mike Sullivan Was Years In The Making