BOSTON -- Jim Rutherford is, as Mike Sullivan sees it, "the best general manager in hockey."
Trouble is, Rutherford isn't a GM anymore, having resigned from the Penguins Wednesday.
That means that Patrik Allvin, who will replace Rutherford on at least an interim basis, is the guy charged with getting Sullivan the players he believes he'll need to take this team as far as it can go in 2020-21.
And while Sullivan's relationship with Allvin isn't nearly as long or strong as the one he has with Rutherford, Sullivan said he is confident that Allvin will handle his new duties capably.
"He's a really smart guy," Sullivan said during a video conference Thursday. "He has a wealth of experience in different aspects of the game. I think he's a great personnel guy, as far as his evaluation and assessment of players and how they might fit into our team to help us win."
Sullivan, like his players, learned of Rutherford's resignation after practice Wednesday.
"It caught us all by surprise," he said.
Sidney Crosby echoed that sentiment, saying that, "I think everyone was surprised."
That's understandable, but Crosby said he is not concerned about the turnover recently among people in high-profile positions in the organization, like Rutherford and the three assistant coaches who were fired after last season.
"It's a great organization, and there are so many people who make it great," he said. "The commitment has always been to winning. You've seen people move on from the organization and have great success in other places. That's always a great sign."
That wasn't the case with the Penguins' latest batch of medical news, although it could have been worse. Brian Dumoulin, who has worked with Kris Letang on the No. 1 pairing, is "week-to-week," Sullivan said, but John Marino is scheduled to be in the lineup when the Penguins face Boston tonight at 7:08 at TD Garden.
In addition to Dumoulin, the Penguins will be missing newly signed defenseman Yannick Weber. He isn't injured, but was prevented from reaching Boston because of a snowstorm and will join the Penguins in New York for games against the Rangers Saturday and Monday.
Losing Dumoulin means the Penguins are without their top four left-handed defensemen.
"When someone goes down, we need to make sure that we pick each other up and play an intelligent game," Sullivan said.
Although signing Weber appears to have been Rutherford's last official act as GM, his fingerprints will remain on this franchise for years.
Nonetheless, the people who are still part of it must carry on in their roles, despite their obvious affection for Rutherford and regardless of who's in the GM's office.
"My job doesn't change," Sullivan said. "I'm going to coach this team the best way I know how."
That includes moving past all the potential distractions, the injuries and the resignation of a popular GM, before trying to take a point or two from the Bruins this evening.
"We've always had a running conversation with our players about controlling the control-ables," Sullivan said. "And making sure we keep a short-term focus and a short-term mindset, and we don't allow ourselves to get out of that necessary focus on the task at hand."