Canucks fire head coach John Tortorella, assistant Mike Sullivan

The Vancouver Canucks officially fired head coach John Tortorella and Tortorella's chief lieutenant, assistant coach Mike Sullivan, on Thursday. Sullivan served as Vancouver's head coach for six games during Tortorella's suspension for attempting to fight Flames coach Bob Hartley.

"Today we are making an important change in the direction of our team," said Canucks president of hockey operations Trevor Linden in a team release. "On behalf of the entire organization, we extend our thanks to John, Mike and their families for their commitment to the Canucks and wish them the very best."

The move to fire Tortorella was accompanied by an e-mail to season ticket holders, which you can read in full here:

[Courtesy @Sir_Earl]

Both Tortorella and Sullivan worked for the Canucks for only one season, during which the Canucks missed the postseason for the first time since 2008 and amassed a paltry 83 points.