The Arizona Coyotes hired Xavier A. Gutierrez as their new president and CEO, making him the first Latino to hold those positions in NHL history, the club announced Monday.

He joins the Coyotes after serving as managing director of Clearlake Capital Group, a private equity firm based in California. He has over 20 years of experience as a business executive, investor, and dealmaker, according to the team.

Gutierrez fills the vacancy left by the May departure of Ahron Cohen, who moved on from the organization and his dual roles as the club's president and CEO.

Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo became the first and only person of Hispanic heritage to serve as chairman of an NHL club when he took over last July.

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After speaking out against racial injustice, Braden Holtby and his wife, Brandi, are putting their words into action.

The Washington Capitals goaltender and his partner launched the "Get Off the Bench for Racial Equality" auction benefitting Black Lives Matter DC and The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the club announced Monday.

The Holtbys will donate $5,000 to each organization while matching the money raised in the auction, which is now live. It will run through June 12 at 12 p.m. ET.

Items include jerseys and helmets signed by the netminder and some of his star teammates, such as Alex Ovechkin and John Carlson. A piece of wooden artwork depicting and signed by Holtby is also up for sale.

Last week, Holtby authored one of the most powerful anti-racism statements in the hockey world. He lamented the damage the naming of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge has caused to the local black community and said, "America will never be great until all BLACK lives matter."

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Seven current and retired black NHL players have formed the Hockey Diversity Alliance, an independent group seeking to eliminate racism and intolerance in hockey, the players announced Monday.

Former NHL defenseman Akim Aliu and current San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane will serve as co-heads. The executive committee includes Detroit Red Wings rearguard Trevor Daley, Minnesota Wild blue-liner Matt Dumba, Buffalo Sabres winger Wayne Simmonds, retired forward Joel Ward, and Chris Stewart, a veteran winger who plays for the Philadelphia Flyers' AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Members of the new organization spoke with Colin Kaepernick in video calls in recent weeks, according to TSN's Frank Seravalli.

The alliance plans to combat racism in society as a whole, as well as within the hockey world.

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NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr is applauding the many players who have taken a stand against racism and police brutality.

"I'm really proud of the guys," Fehr recently told The Canadian Press' Joshua Clipperton. "They understand it's an important moment. They understand what the issues are, at least in the grand scope. And they're making their voice heard. Not everybody, but quite a lot. And that's to their credit."

Fehr is more than familiar with protests for social causes. He grew up during the civil rights era and was unable to attend his college graduation at the University of Indiana because it was scheduled to take place a week after the Kent State shootings amid peaceful Vietnam War demonstrations in 1970.

He's hopeful the Black Lives Matter movement brings about significant change for the better.

"These are issues which have always been important and fundamental and around which you need to make progress," Fehr said. "The hope is that in one fashion or another, the current state of events will result in that kind of progress and meaningful progress being made."

Over 100 NHLers have voiced their support for the cause over the last week or so, following the death of George Floyd in police custody on May 25.

The Floyd incident - which ignited protests around the world after being captured on video - was the latest example of white officers' or civilians' conduct leading to the death of a black person.

The NHL is creating four committees to address diversity issues at all levels of the sport.

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Cooper Marody will honor Colby Cave with a musical ode to the late forward.

Marody has written and produced a song entitled "Agape" as a tribute to his Bakersfield Condors and Edmonton Oilers teammate, according to Condors broadcaster Ryan Holt.

The track will be released June 12 (matching Cave's number with the Oilers), with proceeds going toward the memorial fund established by the team and Cave's family.

Cave died in April at the age of 25 after suffering a brain bleed. He had been placed in a medically induced coma following emergency surgery to remove a colloid cyst.

The two forwards played together with the Condors this season and also suited up together for a game with the NHL club in 2018-19.

Marody has penned two previous tunes, called "I Don't Deserve Her Yet" and "Behind Me." He posted both online last summer.

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Mark Fraser is encouraging those involved in hockey to continue speaking up about racial injustice and bigotry.

"Please don't stop making noise," the former NHL defenseman wrote in The Players' Tribune on Friday. "Please don't go silent. Silence is violence in this case. Be proud to know that you are not only standing on the right side of the fence, but you are also actively using your voices and letting yourself be heard in support of our cause and our fight for justice and equality. Show us your love. Show us you love us. To quote (U.S.) Senator Cory Booker, 'What does love look like in public? It looks like justice.'"

Fraser urged the hockey community to go beyond merely expressing support online.

"Social media posts are great, but it can't end there," he wrote. "Don't let an Instagram story be the only thing you did. That's not enough. We need more. George Floyd needs more! Trayvon Martin needs more! Breonna Taylor needs more! Eric Garner needs more! Ahmaud Arbery needs more!"

Fraser added, "Police are shooting peaceful protestors in the face with rubber bullets and tear gas. Whites and blacks alike. Encourage people to vote and get real leaders in positions of influence who actually want to see change happen. Educate yourself on our struggle. Try to disarm your privilege to better understand. Educate your children about equality. ... But please don't go back to being silent. That will only hurt us in the end."

The 33-year-old played parts of seven NHL seasons and suited up for 219 career games, more than half of which he spent with the New Jersey Devils. Fraser last played in the league in 2014-15, but he's been plying his trade overseas for the last three campaigns, appearing in 50 games for the German league's Schwenningen Wild Wings in 2019-20.

His grandfather, Cecil Fraser, immigrated to Kingston, Ontario, from Kingston, Jamaica, in 1954, and became a lawyer. His father, Hugh, was also a lawyer and competed for Canada as a sprinter in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal.

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The Ottawa Senators Foundation will no longer be associated with the NHL club as of Aug. 1, the charity announced Thursday.

"On July 31, 2020, the agreement between the Ottawa Senators Foundation and the club, which grants the foundation the right to use club trademarks, including the Ottawa Senators name, expires," the foundation said in a statement.

"As a first priority, we will look to fulfill our current operational, legal, and charitable obligations by July 31, 2020, after which we will focus on the Foundation's future," the foundation added.

The Senators responded Thursday by announcing the club would begin a request-for-proposals process to consider other philanthropic options.

The organization claimed it informed the foundation "months ago" it planned to initiate that process, and that "foundation leadership protested" and told the team it wouldn't comply.

The Senators Foundation has been primarily dedicated to youth programs in the Ottawa community.

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P.K. Subban is speaking up in an effort to end racial injustice and is determined to help those affected by it.

"What does 'change the game' mean?" the New Jersey Devils defenseman said Wednesday, referring to the phrase on his hat. "'Change the game' means 'change the narrative.' The narrative has been the same. No justice. There needs to be justice.

"Justice has to happen, change needs to come, but we need everyone ... to look at our lives and see where we can help that change and do our part. I'm committed to that - I'm committed to that through and through."

Subban also said he's donated $50,000 to the GoFundMe campaign created to assist Gianna Floyd - the six-year-old daughter of the late George Floyd - and revealed the NHL subsequently matched that amount.

The campaign has raised more than $800,000 of its $1-million goal.

Subban joined a growing number of NHLers and other athletes who are making their voices heard following the death of the elder Floyd. Floyd, a black man from Minneapolis, died in police custody on May 25 after a white officer, Derek Chauvin, kneeled on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes while holding him on the ground in handcuffs.

Floyd's death has sparked protests in many U.S. cities, as well as in Subban's hometown of Toronto.

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Braden Holtby strongly condemned anti-black racism in a powerful message Wednesday.

The Washington Capitals goaltender opened his statement on Twitter by pointing out that a local landmark, the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, is named after a former U.S. president who enacted racist policies.

Holtby referred to the bridge as "monstrous" and called Wilson "an outspoken white supremacist."

"The bridge sits there mocking every black person who has to travel across it while reading that name as a reminder of how much pain has been inflicted on their race," he wrote.

Holtby then denounced systemic racism and racial injustice as a whole.

"The injustice and hatred-infused power we've seen recently is anything but new," he wrote. "To say there have been improvements is very naive. In today's age of information and communication at our fingertips, the change is far too minimal.

"The amount of inhumane, hate-based, racial crimes that have been committed in the centuries of American history is enough to make your skin crawl in discomfort and your eyes well with tears. Yet it's still happening. In 2020. It should never happen. Yet it still is."

The Capitals netminder also offered words of encouragement for protesters and closed by rejecting U.S. President Donald Trump's campaign slogan while affirming his own support for the black community.

"For everyone standing up and marching for what is right, your voices are not going unheard," Holtby wrote. "You're bringing pride to every person who believes in the universal value of a human being. Keep fighting, and I vow to demonstrate and educate what you are fighting for. Not only to myself but my children, family, and anyone else who will listen. Because America will never be great until all BLACK lives matter."

Holtby is Canadian but has spent his entire 10-year career with the Capitals. He declined an invitation to the White House last year, saying, "I've got to stay true to my values."

Numerous players and teams have issued statements over the past week following the killing of George Floyd. Floyd, a black man from Minneapolis, died in police custody after Derek Chauvin, a white officer, kneeled on his neck for over eight minutes while holding Floyd in handcuffs on the ground.

Floyd's death has sparked protests across the United States.

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Sidney Crosby has joined the growing number of NHL players speaking out against racial injustice and police brutality.

"What happened to George Floyd cannot be ignored," the Pittsburgh Penguins captain wrote in a statement from his foundation Wednesday. "Racism that exists today in all forms is not acceptable. While I am not able to relate to the discrimination that black and minority communities face daily, I will listen and educate myself on how I can help make a difference.

"Together, we will find solutions through necessary dialogue and a collective effort."

Crosby is the latest player to offer thoughts in the wake of Floyd's death in police custody, which has led to protests throughout the United States.

San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane, who's black, called last week for white athletes "like Tom Brady and Sidney Crosby" to make their voices heard about "what is right, and clearly in this case, what is unbelievably wrong."

Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died in Minneapolis on May 25 after Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes while Floyd was handcuffed on the ground.

A multitude of athletes and the majority of North America's pro sports teams have since issued statements condemning systemic racism and inequality.

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