Former NHLer Sean Avery was released Friday by the Orlando Solar Bears of the East Coast Hockey League -- just two days after they signed the 41-year-old forward.

Avery last appeared in an NHL game on Dec. 10, 2011, while a member of the New York Rangers. He had been placed Wednesday on the team's reserve list and the team announced on Friday that he was released from his standard player contract.

Capitals star Alex Ovechkin issued an anti-war statement on Friday in his first comments following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"Please, no more war. It doesn't matter who is in the war -- Russia, Ukraine, different countries -- we have to live in peace," he said following the Capitals' practice.

Ovechkin, 36, has been an supporter of Vladimir Putin over the years. In 2017, he campaigned on behalf of Putin by starting a social media movement called Putin Team, writing, "I never made a secret of my attitude toward our president, always openly supporting him."

When asked whether he supports Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Ovechkin said, "I'm Russian, right? It's not something I can control. It's not in my hands. I hope it's going to end soon and there's going to be peace in both countries. I don't control this one."

He said the invasion of Ukraine by Russia is "a hard situation" for him.

Hall of Fame forward Bobby Hull is no longer serving as a team ambassador for the Blackhawks.

Hull played for Chicago for 15 years, collecting 604 goals and 549 assists. He was named a Blackhawks ambassador in a ceremony with fellow Hall of Famer Stan Mikita in 2008.

Finland won its first ever Olympic men's ice hockey gold medal with a 2-1 victory over the Russian Olympic Committee on Sunday in Beijing.

Finland forward Hannes Bjorninen scored the game-winning goal just 31 seconds into the third period. He added an assist on Ville Pokka's goal in the second period that tied the game after the ROC opened the scoring in the first period.

Jack Eichel will debut for the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday in a home game against the Colorado Avalanche, Vegas general manager Kelly McCrimmon announced Monday.

"I always had the date circled for a while; I just had to go through all the protocols," Eichel said. "I just feel like I'm back at that point where I'm ready to play. I just want to get back in there and get the confidence back in playing a game."

Cody Ceci and Zach Hyman each scored a goal, Mike Smith stopped 37 shots and the Edmonton Oilers beat the New York Islanders 3-1 Friday night.

Jesse Puljujarvi also scored for the Oilers and Connor McDavid had two assists to help Jay Woodcroft get a win in his NHL coaching debut. Mike Smith stopped 37 shots, including 18 in the first period, to improve to 3-4-1 on the season.

Woodcroft moved up from Bakersfield of the AHL to replace the fired Dave Tippett on Wednesday.

The Arizona Coyotes are going to college as they wait on a potential new arena in Tempe.

The Coyotes announced on Thursday that they've reached an agreement with Arizona State University to play at the Sun Devils' new multipurpose arena beginning in the 2022-23 season. The team said it will play all its home games at the venue through the 2024-25 season, with an additional option for the 2025-26 season.

Forget about that interim tag. Martin St. Louis is planning to stick around as the coach of the Montreal Canadiens.

In his introductory news conference on Thursday, only hours before his first home game in the Bell Centre, St. Louis said becoming a head coach in the NHL is a dream come true.

Dave Tippett has been fired as Edmonton Oilers coach, a source confirmed to ESPN. Jay Woodcroft, coach of the Oilers' American Hockey League affiliate Bakersfield Condors, has been promoted to work behind Edmonton's bench.

The shakeup came Thursday, following back-to-back losses against Vegas and Chicago by a combined score of 8-1.

Brad Marchand will have an in-person hearing with NHL Player Safety Wednesday night for roughing and high sticking against Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry.

Because it's in-person (via Zoom), any suspension levied could be five games or more. Marchand was already banned three games this season for slew footing Oliver Ekman-Larsson and has been suspended seven times total in his career.