As a youth, Reirden played in the 1984 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Chicago Young Americansminor ice hockey team. Reirden was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the 12th round, 242nd overall in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft. Upon being drafted Reirden went to Bowling Green State University where he played for four years. From there he played in the ECHL and IHL for a number of years before finally getting the call up to the NHL with the Edmonton Oilers for part of the 1998–99 season. Following his brief stint with the Oilers, Reirden signed as a free agent with the St. Louis Blues and had his most successful season in the NHL during the 1999–2000 season, scoring 25 points. The following year Reirden was hurt for most of the year and played only 38 games with the Blues. Reirden then played the 2001–02 season with the Atlanta Thrashers. He played his last tour in the NHL with the Phoenix Coyotes during the 2003–04 season, playing in 7 games. In the 2005–06 season, Reirden played for the DEG Metro Stars of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga in Germany and his last season as a player was split between EC Graz of the Austrian Hockey League and SønderjyskE Ishockey in Denmark's Superisligaen.
Coaching career
Reirden's first coaching job was as an assistant coach for the Bowling Green Falcons during the 2007–08 season. On July 31, 2010 Reirden was named assistant coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins joining fellow assistant coach Tony Granato on the bench. He replaced Mike Yeo who left the organization to become the head coach for the Houston Aeros of the American Hockey League. On June 25, 2014, it was announced that Reirden and Granato had been relieved of their duties with the Penguins. On June 25, he was hired by the Washington Capitals as an assistant coach. On June 29, 2018, Reirden became the head coach of the Capitals, replacing Barry Trotz who left the team after winning the Stanley Cup with the Capitals due to a contract dispute. In his first season as head coach of the Capitals, he guided them to a 48–26–8 record and the top record in the NHL's Metropolitan Division, but they would lose in the First Round of the playoffs to the Carolina Hurricanes in seven games.
