Ex-Penguins forward Zach Aston-Reese returns with the Red Wings

Zach Aston-Reese has been on this stage before.

A big game at PPG Paints Arena for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Be it during the second round of the 2018 playoffs against the Washington Capitals or the first round in 2021 versus the New York Islanders, Aston-Reese has participated in his fair share of consequential contests here.

And Thursday’s entanglement will be no different as the Penguins are battling on a daily basis to stay in the playoff race in the final stretches of the regular season.

The lone exception on Thursday is that he will be wearing the white road sweater of the Detroit Red Wings.

“It’s just exciting to be able to go against the old team,” Aston-Reese said following the Red Wings’ morning skate.

Just being in a Red Wings jersey — or any NHL jersey, for that matter — might be enough of a reason to celebrate for Aston-Reese.

Before Thursday, he had only played in one NHL contest this season, having spent the vast majority of the 2023-24 with the Red Wings’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins.

“It’s kind of been a roller coaster of emotions, being a full-time NHLer last year then going to the (AHL),” Aston-Reese said. “It’s been a lot of fun. I’ve been with my best friend, (forward) Dominic Shine, in Grand Rapids. We’ve been putting together a nice season at the end down there. Making a good playoff push. It’s exciting to be here playing good hockey.”

Aston-Reese, 29, appeared to play good hockey within his limitations last season. As a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs, he established himself as a sturdy fourth-liner and penalty killer, roles he refined during his first five seasons with the Penguins. In fact, Aston-Reese set career highs — albeit modest ones — in games (77), goals (10) and points (14) with Toronto last season while working on a relatively frugal one-year contract with a salary cap hit of $840,630.

Surely, there would be no shortage of suitors for a reliable defensive forward who wouldn’t be expensive to sign?

But with the NHL still dealing with the economic ramifications of the pandemic — i.e. a mostly flat salary cap — Aston-Reese went unsigned most of the summer and did not hook up with any other team until the Carolina Hurricanes brought him in on a professional tryout contract Sept. 14.

By Oct. 6, the Hurricanes cut Aston-Reese loose and he wound up signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Red Wings two days later.

With Grand Rapids, he has posted 29 points (14 goals, 15 assists) in 59 games.

Zach Aston-Reese with 12 seconds to spare and the @griffinshockey COMPLETE THE COMEBACK‼️ pic.twitter.com/9NbYiy5ABJ

— American Hockey League (@TheAHL) January 21, 2024

He was recalled to the Red Wings’ NHL roster on an emergency basis Wednesday as incumbent forwards Andrew Copp (broken cheekbone) and Michael Rasmussen (undisclosed) are sidelined due to injuries.

Per Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde, Aston-Reese is expected to man the fourth line with Austin Czarnik and Christian Fischer.

“It was a tough call for us because (Grand Rapids) is having a really good season,” Lalonde said. “We have a lot of options down there but looking a little deeper into and how we wanted this to look tonight, I think we needed someone that could eat some minutes for us, some responsible minutes. He’s done that his entire career. There’s a lot of NHL experience there.”

The bulk of that experience came with the Penguins.

Signed out of Northeastern University in 2017, Aston-Reese was touted as the next Patric Hornqvist — an impactful net-front presence — by former general manager Jim Rutherford but wound up being a reasonable facsimile of Tom Kuhnhackl, a reliable fourth-liner.

For parts of two seasons, Aston-Reese was part of a very trusted defensive line along with Teddy Blueger and Brandon Tanev and routinely drew assignments against the opposition’s top line.

By March of 2022, Aston-Reese was part of the bundle of assets the Penguins dealt to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for top-six winger Rickard Rakell. Since then, Aston-Reese has been something of a nomad as a professional hockey player.

His latest layover is in Detroit (by way of Grand Rapids).

“I didn’t even know what to expect, it was such a weird summer,” Aston-Reese said. “I was hoping to get something done with Carolina. It just didn’t work out. I didn’t want to wait too long. Sometimes, it’s just the hand you’re dealt. I didn’t really have any expectations.”

With the league’s salary cap expected to go up by a little more than $4 million this upcoming offseason, Aston-Reese is hopeful he can find steadier work at the NHL level.

“It’s tough to say,” Aston-Reese said. “The (salary) cap is going up so that should help a little bit. But I honestly don’t know. Just got to have a good offseason and hopefully, there’s an opportunity. For a guy in my position, it might come down to a little bit of luck.”

As fortune would have it, Aston-Reese has been summoned by the Red Wings to help keep their own slim playoff hopes alive against a team they are in direct competition with for the final wild card seed in the Eastern Conference.

“It’s pretty crazy,” Aston-Reese said. “It’s kind of do or die for both teams. Just carry over what I’ve been doing in Grand Rapids, what I did when I was here. Play solid, play physical. There’s not a lot of margin for error in a game like tonight. Be as simple as possible and just limiting their opportunities.”