The Pittsburgh Penguins were hoping to build on the momentum of their 4-2 victory over the rival Washington Capitals last week, and welcomed in the Western Conference contending Dallas Stars to PPG Paints Arena on Monday night.

However, the game's opening 20 minutes were nothing short of an absolute disaster for Pittsburgh. By the time the horn sounded to signal the merciful end of the first period, the Stars had lit the lamp an astounding six times and took a 6-0 lead into the dressing room.

Matt Duchene opened the scoring just 2:33 after the opening faceoff, and the floodgates were open. Logan Stankhoven scored at 7:13, followed by a goal from Mason Marchment at 10:16. Miro Heiskenen then scored twice within 90 seconds to increase the lead to 5-0, followed by the sixth goal of the period from Tyler Seguin on the power-play.

Needless to say, Penguins fans were angry at what they were watching, with many of them taking to social media to demand the firing of embattled head coach Mike Sullivan, via X.

“Wow. And everyone thinks Jarry is the problem. It’s Sully’s stale system and slow forwards,” exclaimed @RobAbramowicz.

“FIRE SULLIVAN,” exclaimed @blommaqvist.

“Has a coach been fired mid game? Now would be the time,” opined @dstachoski.

“Fire Mike Sullivan already. This is getting ridiculous,” added @mseitz2001.

“This has to be Sullivan's last game coached for Pittsburgh,” said @justantheprince.

“Should’ve fired Sullivan after the blown series against the rags in 22,” added @HDeLattre88.

Unless a miracle occurs, the Penguins are well on their way to another loss, which would drop their record to 6-9-2 through the first 17 games.

Penguins coach Mike Sullivan is feeling the heat 

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Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan (right) talks with center Lars Eller (20) at the bench against the Minnesota Wild during the third period at PPG Paints Arena. Pittsburgh won 4-3.
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The Penguins made the decision to fire embattled head coach Mike Johnston midway through the 2015-16 NHL season and announced that Sullivan would be taking over as head coach, a decision that paid off as well as they could have hoped for.

Not only did Sullivan lead the Penguins to the Stanley Cup later that spring, but followed that up with a second straight title the following year.

However, things have not gone smoothly for Sullivan and the franchise since then. After missing the playoffs for two consecutive years and facing another season that appears headed in the same direction, many believe that the clock could be ticking on Sullivan's tenure behind the Penguins' bench.