The Winnipeg Jets re-signed defenseman Sami Niku to a two-year deal with an average annual value of $725,000, the team announced Friday.

Niku, 24, will be a restricted free agent when the deal expires.

The 6-foot-1 Finn recorded five assists while logging 16:10 of average ice time through 17 regular-season games with the Jets in 2019-20.

Winnipeg selected Niku in the seventh round of the 2015 NHL Draft.

The Jets are currently $700,000 over the salary cap with one outstanding restricted free agent to sign in forward Jack Roslovic.

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Former Boston University forward Travis Roy died at the age of 45 on Thursday due to complications from his paralysis.

Roy suffered a career-ending injury as a 20-year-old freshman just 11 seconds into his college hockey career in 1995-96. He crashed headfirst into the boards after checking an opponent from North Dakota, and the accident left him as a quadriplegic.

"It is with heavy hearts that we mourn the passing of Travis Roy," Boston University said in a statement Thursday. "His story is the epitome of inspiration and courage, and he was a role model and a hero to so many people. ... His legacy will last forever, not just within the Boston University community, but with the countless lives he has impacted across the country."

Roy went on to become a motivational speaker and advocate for the disabled. He started the Travis Roy Foundation in 1996 to fund research and help other spinal cord-injury survivors.

The hockey world took to social media to remember Roy with an outpouring of warm messages and condolences.

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The Calgary Flames aren't done adding to the roster this offseason.

General manager Brad Treliving is looking to add an experienced right-side defenseman, TSN's Darren Dreger reported Thursday.

The Flames lost longtime rearguard T.J. Brodie, who played the right side on the club's top pair, in free agency this offseason. Treliving added Chris Tanev to fill that void, but hopes to add more depth on the blue line.

Here's how Calgary's back end currently shapes up:

Sami Vatanen and former Flames defenseman Travis Hamonic are intriguing right-side options, but Calgary has just $1 million in projected cap space and still needs to sign Oliver Kylington - a restricted free agent - to a new deal.

More realistic free-agent options include veterans Andy Greene and Ron Hainsey. The Flames could address their need via trade as well.

Calgary finished 17th defensively in 2019-20, allowing 3.03 goals against per game.

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The Arizona Coyotes are renouncing the rights to 2020 fourth-round draft pick Mitchell Miller, the team announced Thursday.

Arizona said on Oct. 26 that the organization wouldn't cut ties with Miller despite having knowledge that in 2016 he bullied Isaiah Meyer-Crothers, a former classmate who is Black and has a developmental disability. However, the club has since reversed course.

"We have decided to renounce the rights to Mitchell Miller, effective immediately," Coyotes president and CEO Xavier Gutierrez said in a statement. "Prior to selecting Mitchell in the NHL draft, we were aware that a bullying incident took place in 2016. We do not condone this type of behavior but embraced this as a teachable moment to work with Mitchell to make him accountable for his actions and provide him with an opportunity to be a leader on anti-bullying and anti-racism efforts.

"We have learned more about the entire matter, and more importantly, the impact it has had on Isaiah and the Meyer-Crothers family. What we learned does not align with the core values and vision for our organization and leads to our decision to renounce our draft rights. On behalf of the Arizona Coyotes ownership and our entire organization, I would like to apologize to Isaiah and the Meyer-Crothers family. We are building a model franchise on and off the ice and will do the right thing for Isaiah and the Meyer-Crothers family, our fans, and our partners. Mr. Miller is now a free agent and can pursue his dream of becoming an NHL player elsewhere."

Meyer-Crothers said Miller consistently harassed him, beat him up, and frequently called him the N-word and "brownie" while the two grew up together in Ohio.

Miller is slated to join North Dakota as a freshman for the 2020-21 season. Fighting Hawks head coach Brad Berry said in a statement the school knows about Miller's past but hasn't disciplined him to this point.

"We made a decision that our program could provide him the necessary infrastructure and culture to hone not only his hockey abilities but most importantly, assist him in his continuing growth as a human being which will last him the remainder of his life," Berry said in a statement, according to Brad Elliott Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald.

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The NHL announced Thursday that it's concluded its investigation into Dale Tallon's alleged use of "racially derogatory language" while in the Toronto bubble for this summer's qualifying round and determined the allegations were not substantiated.

The league began investigating Tallon in late August for allegedly using a racial slur. An anonymous report to the league also said that he'd previously made "openly racial, religious, and ethnic comments." He was fired as general manager of the Florida Panthers earlier that month after his club was eliminated in the qualifying round against the New York Islanders.

The NHL and a third party (Seyfarth Shaw LLP) conducted a full, confidential investigation of the report and interviewed over a dozen members of the Panthers organization regarding Tallon's behavior.

"The allegations were neither corroborated nor substantiated, and are inconsistent with Tallon’s past actions and his affirmative efforts in support of diversity and inclusion initiatives. As a result, based on the investigation, the NHL has further concluded that there has been no established violation of NHL policy or protocols," read part of the league's statement.

Tallon denied using racist language at the outset of the investigation and said he believes the probe could have stemmed from his reaction to Minnesota Wild defenseman and Hockey Diversity Alliance member Matt Dumba and his speech supporting Black Lives Matter before a postseason game on Aug. 1.

"I am not racist by any means,” Tallon said at the time. "I have never said anything of the sort. I am all for peace, am all for this alliance and what everyone is trying to do right now."

Tallon has recently been linked to joining the Pittsburgh Penguins' front office "in some capacity." The 70-year-old executive was with the Panthers for 10 years before his departure and previously served as GM of the Chicago Blackhawks.

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Eleven-year NHL veteran Colin Wilson discussed his battle with obsessive-compulsive disorder in The Players' Tribune on Thursday.

Wilson, who was a first-round pick of the Nashville Predators in 2008, was diagnosed with OCD in 2010 during his rookie season. He found out in a meeting with his parents, Predators general manager David Poile, assistant GM Paul Fenton, and team psychologist Gary Solomon. They had picked up on his unusual pre-flight routine.

"I had to clean up all the trash around our gate," Wilson wrote. "Every single wrapper, piece of plastic, you name it. Into the trash. Then I had to be the last passenger on the plane, no matter what. Then, finally, I actually had to talk to the pilots. It didn’t have to be about anything specific, but I had to at least talk to them. After I did all that, I felt safe to fly."

At the time, Wilson admits he didn't take the diagnosis seriously, even though there were other signs.

"I went from obsessing over injuries off the ice to thinking I was going to get hurt every time I stepped on it - thinking I'd get hurt every shift," he wrote. "Or feeling like my skates weren't tied properly. I'd have to stay in the locker room and tie them over and over again, as tight as I could, until my hands bled. And that was just a short-term fix. For years, I felt like I was skating on stilts because my skates never felt right."

Wilson also suffered from insomnia. He took Xanax and Seroquel to help him sleep, but those pills - combined with alcohol and his untreated OCD - caused him to hit rock bottom during Nashville's run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2017.

"In the Cup finals, I was barely able to function. I was running on fumes, my head felt like it was on fire - I felt like I was going insane," he wrote.

That offseason, Wilson began taking psychedelics "and other similar medicines," which he credits for helping his recovery.

After eight years in Music City, Wilson signed with the Avalanche and spent three seasons in Colorado. However, he only played nine games last year. He needed double hip surgery in December but his hips didn't heal properly and he struggled to walk, so he recently underwent another surgery. He admitted his playing career is "probably over."

Wilson recorded 286 career points across 632 games played. His best season came in 2014-15 with the Preds when he tallied 20 goals and 22 assists.

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The Buffalo Sabres re-signed sniper Victor Olofsson to a two-year contract carrying an annual cap hit of $3.05 million, the team announced Thursday.

Olofsson finished seventh in Calder Trophy voting as the league's top rookie last season after tallying 20 goals and 22 assists in 54 games.

The Swede could potentially follow up his stellar rookie campaign with a breakout season, as he's projected to play on the team's top line with Jack Eichel and Taylor Hall. Eichel took a liking to Olofsson after the two displayed strong chemistry last year.

"I think his work ethic and his dedication to hockey is probably the thing that jumps out the most," Eichel said after the season. "Obviously, he wants to be a good hockey player. He cares about his game; he takes care of himself and he's constantly (working) on his shot. He definitely holds himself accountable. When you put those things together, you're bound to have success."

The 25-year-old was a seventh-round pick of the Sabres in 2014.

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