The 49-year-old, who was fired as coach of the Washington Capitals on Aug. 23 after six seasons in their organization, will oversee the Penguins defensemen and power play. He was an assistant with Pittsburgh in a similar role from 2010-14.
"After the decision was made in Washington, it was really quickly after that permission was asked for by the Pittsburgh Penguins and eventually granted," Reirden said. "Here we are today. A really important day for myself and for the Pittsburgh Penguins moving together here."
Reirden said he will especially enjoy working with several players from his first Pittsburgh tenure, including defenseman Kris Letang, a three-time Stanley Cup champion (2009, 2016, 2017).
"Luckily, that's what made this situation so unique was the fact that I did have connections with some players here," Reirden said. "Definitely coming back to work with Kris was something that I looked forward to. We spent a lot of time in those infant stages of him becoming an NHL defenseman and being able to find a common ground between the unbelievable talent level that he has and staying healthy, and then being able to still contribute at both ends of the ice. He's obviously a special player.
"[The Penguins] were extremely aggressive after getting permission. ... Having a new voice, but yet someone the players are familiar with and had strong relations with, especially the core group of players here. I think it was something that just seemed to go full circle and the way it happened here was a perfect fit for everyone involved."
Pittsburgh also hired Mike Vellucci as an assistant and signed goaltending coach Mike Buckley to a two-year contract. Reirden and Vellucci will work under coach Mike Sullivan after the contracts of assistants Jacques Martin, Mark Recchi and Sergei Gonchar were not renewed following the Penguins' four-game loss to the Montreal Canadiens in the best-of-5 Stanley Cup Qualifiers.
Martin was hired as an assistant with the New York Rangers on Monday.
"[General manager Jim Rutherford] and I went through a pretty extensive process to try to find the right fits for our staff," Sullivan said. "They're really good coaches, first and foremost. They have a wealth of experience in a lot of different capacities. They've won championships at different respective levels. So they know what it takes to win a championship. We felt as though, through the interview process, that these guys were a good fit for us."
Vellucci was general manager and coach of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, the Penguins' American Hockey League affiliate.
"I am pleased to add Todd and Mike to our coaching staff, and believe they will complement Mike Sullivan's coaching style," Rutherford said. "Todd is a Stanley Cup-winning coach with a decade of NHL experience as both an assistant and head coach. Mike brings championship experience at both the AHL and [Ontario Hockey League] level, and is very familiar with how we function as an organization."
Buckley has been Penguins goaltending coach for three seasons. Before that, he was their goaltending development coach from 2013-17.
Reirden, who was an assistant when the Capitals won the Stanley Cup in 2018, was hired as Washington coach June 29, 2018, after Barry Trotz left to coach the New York Islanders. Reirden coached the Capitals to two Metropolitan Division titles but could not advance past the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs either season. Washington lost to Trotz and the Islanders in five games in the Eastern Conference First Round this season.
"I, obviously, still need to learn and grow and improve," Reirden said. "I learned a lot of lessons over my two years of being a head coach in Washington. Looking forward to learning, like I said, in particular from Mike Sullivan and the success he's had in winning back-to-back championships. ... It's always a unique job perspective when you're able to bring some knowledge of different teams over to another one. I respect that organization and that team so much for what they've been able to accomplish. I couldn't pass up this opportunity."
NHL.com independent correspondent Wes Crosby contributed to this report
