Penguins A to Z: Zach Aston-Reese finally finds a role
While the NHL is on hold due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 54 individuals under NHL contract with the organization, from mid-level prospect Niclas Almari to high-profile trade acquisition Jason Zucker.
Zach Aston-Reese
Position: Center
Shoots: Right
Age: 25
Height: 6-foot
Weight: 204 pounds
2019-20 NHL statistics: 57 games, 13 points (six goals, seven assists)
Contract: First year of a two-year contract with a salary cap hit of $1 million. Pending restricted free agent in 2021.
Acquired: Signed as an undrafted free agent in March 2017
This season: When the Penguins signed Aston-Reese out of Northeastern, general manager Jim Rutherford suggested he could become the next Patric Hornqvist in terms of being a net-front power forward. For most of Aston-Reese’s first two years in the NHL, he looked like the next Beau Bennett in terms of being an oft-injured prospect.
After battling injuries and struggling to find his place on the team for two seasons, Aston-Reese finally found a role as the left winger on the team’s fourth line — which probably was used more as a third line — along with Teddy Blueger at center and Brandon Tanev on the right wing. Coach Mike Sullivan liberally applied that trio against the opposition’s top lines and more often than not got pleasant results. That allowed the Penguins’ top lines to avoid difficult matchups.
(Video courtesy NHL)
According to Natural Stat Trick, Aston-Reese ranks third on the team with 160 defensive-zone starts and is fifth among the Penguins forwards with an average of 1 minute, 35 seconds of short-handed ice time per game.
By the time the NHL’s season was paused, Aston-Reese had missed 12 games because of an undisclosed injury but had resumed skating.
The future: Assuming he is healthy, Aston-Reese will slot back in with Blueger and Tanev on the third/fourth/whatever-number-you-like line playing shutdown defense. While Aston-Reese’s defensive game has taken a huge step forward, his offense has been stagnant with only two goals in his last 17 games. Regaining the offensive touch he displayed in college as well as the American Hockey League would round out his game considerably.
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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