I've just implemented and test this successfully. Same situation with my project, want to connect to a Raspberry Pi with no router or wifi. Just a simple ethernet cable.
Using ssh putty program put the address as
raspberrypi.local
Log and in and you can access the terminal.
Alternatively if VNC server is setup, use VNC server and put
raspberrypi.local:1
In the server address. input your VNC server password and you've now got GUI access to do what you want.
In may case it was run scripts in a remote location. In the posters situation, safely shutdown the Pi. Simples Pimples.
