CRANBERRY, Pa. -- Zach Aston-Reese was back in Pittsburgh on Wednesday.
No, he wasn't recalled to the big club. Not yet. The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins stopped in town for a practice at the Lemieux Sports Complex on their way to Ohio for a two-game series against the Cleveland Monsters.
It was a bit of déjà vu for Aston-Reese, who was sent down to the AHL from Pittsburgh only nine days ago. He's staying in the same hotel, skating on the same ice. It was nice to be back though, he said. And not just because he was able to eat at Burgatory last night.
"It's nice to break up the trip to Cleveland a little bit," Aston-Reese said after practice. "And it's good for the guys here to see us practice, as far as management."
Aston-Reese skated on a line with Sam Lafferty and Anthony Angello during the uptempo, hour-long practice, the same linemates he played with in Wilkes-Barre's season opener, a 3-2 shootout win over the Springfield Thunderbirds.
While Aston-Reese would surely rather be in Pittsburgh under different circumstances, he's making the most of his time in Wilkes-Barre. In the opener, Aston-Reese scored the Penguins' second goal, and the lone goal in the shootout:
It's the start to the season Aston-Reese wanted, given how things began last season in Wilkes-Barre. In 2017-18, Aston-Reese didn't register his first point until his sixth game, and didn't score a goal until his eighth.
"It's definitely nice, way different than last year's start for me personally," said Aston-Reese. "I think just as far as the team down in Wilkes, it's been unbelievable since day one of practice. Everyone is competing, and everyone wants to be up here. It's been really good."
While many fans might not have liked the decision to have Aston-Reese start the season in Wilkes-Barre, the move makes sense. Aston-Reese was one of the few forwards on the roster who are still exempt from waivers this season. He can play big minutes in Wilkes-Barre, and move freely between the NHL and AHL as he's needed. Aston-Reese is taking the move in stride and understands that it's all just part of the development process.
"Obviously, you want to start up here," Aston-Reese said. "But it is only my second year pro. It's good for me. You can look at all the negatives and sulk, but that doesn't get you anywhere."
"Sometimes you just have to suffer a little bit," he continued before pausing to correct himself. "I wouldn't call it suffering. But in a sense, you're not in the situation you want to be in."
What was the message Mike Sullivan gave to Aston-Reese before he packed his bags and made the trip up I-80?
"He told me straight up, 'Just get your swagger back,’" Aston-Reese laughed. "I don't know if that word is cool anymore or not, but that was the word."
By "swagger", of course, Sullivan was referring to Aston-Reese's confidence -- just with a fun, "trying-to-be-a-cool-dad" way of saying it.
"I couldn't agree more," Aston-Reese said of Sullivan's message. "I think getting that confidence back is always tough after having to get surgery, and not playing hard all summer. It's been five or six months since I've been back in this position. The first game, getting that out of the way, I felt really good. I kind of had that bite and that jam back in my game. I think that's something they want to see consistently every night."
The AHL doesn't track hits, so there's no way of quantifying it, but Aston-Reese looked like his old self in that first game. He played physical, and was consistently driving to the net as he's been known to do.
He definitely didn't seem timid after that first goal, getting in the face of Springfield's Sebastian Repo after Repo gave Aston-Reese a little cross-check to the back:
"Swagger", confidence, whatever you want to call it, Aston-Reese is building it in Wilkes-Barre, and he'll be ready to go when he gets the call from Pittsburgh.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Penguins practice, Cranberry Township, Pa., Oct. 10, 2018 - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS