The Flames have signed restricted free agent Ryan O'Reilly to an offer sheet, the team announced Thursday.

The offer is for two years, $10M, according to a source.

The Avalanche now have until March 7 to match the offer or accept draft picks as compensation. Colorado would receive a first- and a third-round draft pick if they choose not to match, according to an ESPN.com report.

Twice in one week, Rick DiPietro has been the talk of the Twitter-verse, but this time the jabs and jokes came to a halt after a TV reporter revealed that DiPietro said he had suicidal thoughts over the past three years.

However, the former Islanders goaltender insists that those comments he made to News 12 Long Island were not meant to be taken literally.

"I was just trying to draw attention to how important my wife has been to me," DiPietro told ESPNNewYork.com in a telephone interview.

The NHL is proposing a new realignment plan which would feature playoff wild-card spots plus see the league go from six divisions to four.

The plan was detailed in an NHL memo sent to all 30 clubs Tuesday, which a team source leaked to ESPN.com.

Alex Ovechkin is welcoming Alexander Semin back to Washington as an old friend. The rest of the Capitals have a more complex view of their former teammate, according to an ESPN.com report.

Troy Brouwer ripped Semin's work ethic on Monday, reviving the reputation that dogged the talented Russian's seven seasons playing with the Capitals.

The jersey worn by Mike Eruzione, the captain of the 1980 U.S. hockey team that shocked the Russians 33 years ago in the famous "Miracle On Ice" game, sold for $657,250 on Saturday night, according to an ESPN.com report.

The stick Eruzione used in the game was purchased for $262,900 in an auction conducted by Heritage Auctions in New York City.

Lindy Ruff is finding it difficult being a spectator after his run as Sabres head coach came to an abrupt end this week.

"Ah, god, I miss it already," Ruff said Friday. "Most people wouldn't, but I watched hockey the first night. It's hard. It's a tough feeling. It's been a strange feeling. But I've got to keep going. I love the game."

Speaking publicly for the first time since he was fired, Ruff said it's his intention to pursue another NHL job because he's not lost his passion for coaching.

The Maple Leafs announced Thursday that the team's Senior Advisor Brian Burke will assume a part-time pro scouting position with the Ducks effective immediately.

"Brian and I discussed this opportunity after Anaheim approached the Leafs for permission to speak with him about a possible scouting role," said Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) President Tom Anselmi. "We both agreed that taking this role with Anaheim would best position Brian for his next general manager opportunity in the League. We have granted permission and we will terminate his consulting contract with MLSE so that he can pursue this role with Anaheim."

Burke recently assumed a role as Senior Advisor to MLSE's President and Board of Directors. 

Lindy Ruff is out as coach in Buffalo, meaning the slow-starting Sabres have now become Ron Rolston's mess to clean up.

Rolston was promoted from the Sabres' minor league affiliate, AHL Rochester, to finish out the season as the club's interim head coach Wednesday.

The move was made hours after Ruff was fired amid criticism for the team's early-season struggles.

And it came less than a week after Ruff had defiantly said he wasn't done trying to "clean up this mess."

The Red Wings have put forward Johan Franzen on injured reserve. They also removed goaltender Jonas Gustavsson from IR and assigned him to Grand Rapids of the AHL on a conditioning loan.

Franzen has missed Detroit's last two games with a hip injury, according to an ESPN.com report on Saturday.

A few days have gone by since the Senators lost Erik Karlsson for the rest of the season due to surgery on his Achilles, which was cut by the blade of Pittsburgh's Matt Cooke.

But owner Eugene Melnyk isn't any happier about losing the defending Norris Trophy winner, especially since it involved a player with a history of questionable play.

"To have him taken out by a goon is unconscionable," Melnyk told TSN on Friday. "Whether it was accidental, or whether it was reckless, or whether it was intentional, to me it doesn't matter.

"It's something that never should have happened. This player should never be playing in this league. It's a league for elite players."