The crowd surrounding Zach Aston-Reese’s dressing room stall Wednedsay at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry only confirmed what everybody’s eyes saw an hour or two beforehand.
The kid can play.
And also that the disparity between Aston-Reese and pretty much every other Penguins prospect is striking.
The Hobey Baker Award finalist from Northeastern skated on Pittsburgh ice for the first time and looked exactly like the player who led the NCAA in goals (31) and points (63) during the 2016-17 season.
He also looked like a guy not terribly far away from making his NHL debut.