Zach Aston-Reese

Zachary Aston-Reese (born August 10, 1994) is an American professional ice hockey forward for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Prior to turning professional, Aston-Reese played for Northeastern University. He was named a Hobey Baker hat trick finalist, Hockey East First-Team All-Star, and won Hockey East Player of the Year.

Early career
While playing for the New Jersey Rockets of the Atlantic Junior Hockey League (AJHL) during the 2010–11 season, Aston-Reese also appeared in the United States Hockey League (USHL). He played two games for the Des Moines Buccaneers, as well as 25 games for the Lincoln Stars.

Aston-Reese joined the Stars full-time for the 2011–12 season. In 53 games, he recorded 5 goals and 10 assists.

After one more season with the Stars, Aston-Reese joined the Division 1 Northeastern Huskies. He played for the club for four seasons. During the 2015–16 season, the Huskies won the Hockey East Tournament championship.

The following season, Aston-Reese was named to the Hockey East First All-Star Team, NCAA Division 1 First All-American Team, and the Hockey East Player of the Year.

Pittsburgh Penguins
On March 14, 2017, Aston-Reese (as an undrafted player) signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He joined the Penguins American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for the remainder of the season, recording eight points in ten games.

Aston-Reese started the 2017–18 season in the minors, but made his NHL debut on February 3, 2018 against the New Jersey Devils. He recorded his first two NHL goals in a 6–3 win over the Ottawa Senators on February 13. On February 27, Aston-Reese suffered an upper-body injury during practice. He returned to the Penguins' lineup on March 27 after missing 13 games. Aston-Reese made his postseason debut on April 11, 2018 against the Philadelphia Flyers. On April 18, he recorded his first career playoff point, assisting on a goal by Riley Sheahan. During Game 3 of Round 2 against the Washington Capitals, Aston-Reese was checked by Tom Wilson, resulting in a broken jaw and a concussion. Wilson was suspended three playoff games for the hit.

Prior to the beginning of the 2018–19 season, Aston-Reese was reassigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. However, he was called to the NHL on November 6, after he recorded six goals in 11 games. Aston-Reese managed to score six goals and eleven points in his next thirty games, but he broke his hand in a game against the Florida Panthers on January 8, 2019.

On July 22, 2019, the Penguins re-signed Aston-Reese to a two-year, $2 million contract extension.

Personal life
His father is William Sr. and his mother is Carolyn née Buckheit. He has two older siblings: a sister and a brother named William Jr.

Aston-Reese was a graphic design major in college and has occasionally worked in the Penguins' front office on the design of gameday programs.