Mark Madden: If the Rangers want Mike Sullivan, the Penguins should consider a trade

The New York Rangers want Mike Sullivan to be their coach. The New York media that stooges for the Rangers have leaked that.

But Sullivan is under contract to the Pittsburgh Penguins through 2027.

That doesn’t discourage the Rangers’ stooges, who somehow think the Rangers matter despite a first-round playoff exit this season and just one Stanley Cup since 1940. (Pronounced NINETEEN-FORTY!)

Perhaps, the stooges speculate, the Penguins will hire Toronto’s Kyle Dubas to be their new GM and Dubas will bring Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe with him.

Dubas is out of contract. Keefe has one year left on his. Things are up for grabs in Toronto after a second-round playoff exit. The Leafs have no Cups since 1967 despite hockey’s most resources. (They’re lucky that 1967 is a difficult year to loudly chant.)

But Sullivan is liked by Fenway Sports Group, the Penguins’ owner. He’s from Boston. They’re from Boston. That shouldn’t matter, but it does. Sullivan will have more power than whoever the new GM is.

But with the Penguins aging and fading, perhaps the Penguins should trade Sullivan to the Rangers.

This has zero chance of happening. But it makes sense from a lot of angles.

If the Penguins keep fading, which is probable, Sullivan won’t be their coach for more than another season, perhaps a season-and-a-half.

The Penguins haven’t won a playoff series since 2018. That can’t continue indefinitely without change.

Given that likelihood, why not get assets for Sullivan now? Get out from under that long contract, too.

It would be good for Sullivan. He could win with the Rangers. That’s ignoring that they’re the Rangers, and they don’t win. But it’s an excellent roster.

Sullivan could use a fresh start. Everything about him and the Penguins is stale.

Perhaps his message is lost. Perhaps his system no longer fits. It’s reminiscent of Dan Bylsma, who coached the Penguins to a Cup in 2009 but overstayed his effectiveness via being too rigid in what he did and wanted.

Sullivan is a real good coach, much better than Bylsma. But an eight-year tenure is forever in the NHL. (That’s second-longest behind Tampa Bay’s Jon Cooper.)

The Rangers have done this before. In 1987, they got coach Michel Bergeron from Quebec for a first-round pick and $75,000.

The Penguins should make the Rangers overpay badly.

Related:

• Madden Monday: Not buying into New York rumors about Mike Sullivan going to Rangers
• First Call: Is Kyle Dubas now in play for Penguins' GM search?

The Penguins should want one of the Rangers’ young stud forwards: Either Filip Chytil, Kaapo Kakko or Alexis Lafreniere.

Chytil, 23, is signed through 2027 at a salary cap figure of $4.4 million. If the Penguins got Chytil, the Rangers should pick up a lot of that cap hit.

Kakko, 22, has one more year on a contract that pays $2.1 million. He will be a restricted free agent after the 2023-24 season. Lafreniere, 21, is a restricted free agent. His rookie deal just expired. (No worries. RFAs almost never go anywhere.)

If the Penguins get either Kakko or Lafreniere, the Rangers should have to toss in a second-round draft choice.

Chytil, Kakko and Lafreniere are all first-round picks: Chytil went 21st in 2017, Kakko went second in 2019 and Lafreniere was first overall in 2020.

None is a star, not yet. Chytil had 22 goals last season. Kakko had 18, Lafreniere 16. But each is solid, and with pedigree.

Defenseman K’Andre Miller, 23, would also be a great get. The 22nd pick overall in 2018, he’s got size (6-foot-5) and skill.

Those are the kind of players the Penguins need.

If the Rangers think that kind of return is too much, then no deal.

Sullivan is a top coach. He has won two Stanley Cups for the Penguins. They shouldn’t give him up easily.

The Penguins won’t give Sullivan up at all. This is mindless speculation fueled by the New York media’s wishful thinking. It’s also the business I’ve chosen.

But it can’t hurt to inquire.

In a year or two, the Penguins might wish they had.