Some pretty huge news dropped on Friday morning. The Pittsburgh Penguins have dismissed a large portion of their front office personnel after missing the playoffs for the first time in 17 years.

President of hockey operations Brian Burke, general manager Ron Hextall, and assistant general manager Chris Pryor have all been relieved of their duties.

The Penguins have relieved President of Hockey Operations Brian Burke, General Manager Ron Hextall, and Assistant General Manager, Chris Pryor of their duties, it was announced today by Fenway Sports Group.

Details: https://t.co/kqyacgr0Fr pic.twitter.com/fr9dPvCPOK

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 14, 2023

The Pens were eliminated from playoff contention after the New York Islanders defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-2 this past Wednesday. It marked the first time both Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby missed the postseason since their rookie years in 2005-06.

Before that, the Pens had the longest active postseason streak in any North American sport, appearing in the playoffs for 16 consecutive years, before this season’s failure that led to these big-time firings.

“We are grateful to Brian, Ron, and Chris for their contributions to the organization over the past two seasons, but we feel that the team will benefit from new hockey operations leadership,” team owners John Henry and Tom Werner said in a statement. “While this season has been disappointing, we believe in our core group of players and the goal of contending for the Stanley Cup has not changed.”

Burke, Hextall, and Pryor were all hired by the Penguins in February of 2021 after previous general manager Jim Rutherford resigned from his position. The Pens say their search for new hockey operations leadership will begin immediately.

Here’s the full press release from the team:

Penguins Make Changes in Hockey Operations

The Pittsburgh Penguins have relieved President of Hockey Operations Brian Burke, General Manager Ron Hextall and Assistant General Manager, Chris Pryor of their duties, it was announced today by Fenway Sports Group.

John Henry and Tom Werner issued the following statement:

“We are grateful to Brian, Ron, and Chris for their contributions to the organization over the past two seasons, but we feel that the team will benefit from new hockey operations leadership. While this season has been disappointing, we believe in our core group of players and the goal of contending for the Stanley Cup has not changed.”

The search for new hockey operations leadership will begin immediately.

During this transition, the managerial duties of hockey operations will be shared among current Director of Hockey Operations, Alec Schall, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton General Manager/Manager of Hockey Operations, Erik Heasley and Hockey Operations Analyst, Andy Saucier. Head Coach Mike Sullivan will also assist during the transition.

The Penguins missed the playoffs for the first time in 17 years, ending the longest-active playoff streak among teams in North American professional sports. The streak included three Stanley Cup Championships (2009, ’16, ’17), four Stanley Cup Final appearances and five trips to the Eastern Conference Final. This is only the second time since Sidney Crosby made his NHL debut in 2005-06 that the Penguins did not qualify for the postseason.