No matter what the fans want changed, the Pittsburgh Penguins will keep Mike Sullivan around.

It’s fair for fans to be upset that the Pittsburgh Penguins are missing out on the playoffs for the first time in 16 years.

Anger, frustration, sadness, all of the emotions are going to be felt as everyone tunes in to watch 16 teams not named the Penguins compete for the Stanley Cup.

Along with those emotions will come a lot of finger pointing and blame as to why this season ended the way it did.

Much of the blame will be placed on general manager Ron Hextall, and for good reason; a lot will gear their anger towards the players, most of which are deserving of that treatment.

Then there’s the sect of fans who will call for the coaching staff, mainly Mike Sullivan, to be out of a job.

Sullivan absolutely deserves to take some blame for this season, his stubbornness with certain players and situations didn’t go unnoticed, but that doesn’t mean he’s on his way out.

Not only is Sullivan still a worthy coach, the new ownership group really likes him; perhaps it’s the Boston connection?

Both Fenway Sports Group (FSG) and Sullivan hail from Boston and that kind of synergy can go a long way in job security.

When FSG bought the Penguins, they made it a point to prioritize Sullivan and his standing in the organization.

During their first off-season as the ownership group, Sullivan signed a three-year contract extension to remain as the Penguins head coach.

At the time of the signing, Sullivan had two years remaining on his current deal, which is an exceptionally early time to sign an extension.

Not only is it premature, but FSG made it clear Sullivan is their guy.

When the Penguins released the statement regarding the extension, there was not one, but two quotes from multiple high-standing folks at FSG.

Principal owner John Henry and FSG chairman Tom Werner made their voices heard.

"This is a wonderful day for the entire organization with Mike committing to remain as head coach for the long term with the Penguins," Henry said. "He has clearly demonstrated what an effective leader he is and it's evident how well players respond to his philosophy and work ethic night after night, month after month."

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"We value the relationship we are developing with Mike and felt it was important to ensure that relationship would continue long term," Werner said. "He's one of the best coaches in the National Hockey League and we look forward to our continued collaboration with him and the entire Penguins organization to bring another Stanley Cup to Pittsburgh."

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Getting a statement at all from ownership is rare, but getting two is even more of an anomaly.

Fans might want to see a change behind the Penguins’ bench, but if FSG has any say, Sullivan won’t be going anywhere.

They may get their wish with Ron Hextall, but that was to be expected as FSG inherited him and Brian Burke in the purchase of the team.

If the Boston connection is the one thing keeping Sullivan around, then that's negligence on FSG's part.

Sullivan is still deserving of a job, but it would be totally fair to toss him on the hot seat next season.

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