Blackhawks fire assistant coach Kitchen after playoff sweep
The first shoe to drop in Chicago is Blackhawks assistant coach Mike Kitchen, who has been relieved of his duties.
The news comes days after Chicago was swept out of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in an opening-round loss at the hands of the Nashville Predators.
"We believe this decision is best for our organization moving forward," general manager Stan Bowman said. "Mike had an impact on two different Stanley Cup championship teams during his tenure in Chicago. We appreciate his many contributions and wish he and his family success in the future."
Kitchen joined the Blackhawks as an assistant coach in 2010 and was on the staff for two Stanley Cup championships (2013 and 2015). He also previously worked with head coach Joel Quenneville with the St. Louis Blues.
Mike Kitchen has coached with Joel Quenneville from 1998-2003 and 2010-17. Hawks making a major move to break them up again.
— Second City Hockey (@2ndCityHockey) April 24, 2017
Kitchen was in charge of Chicago's penalty kill, which ranked 24th in the 2016-17 regular season with a success rate of 77.7 percent.