Newsmakers: Wayne Gretzky named partner, VP of Oilers Entertainment Group

Returned Former NHL player Wayne Gretzky returned to the Edmonton Oilers. The Great One was named partner and vice chairman of Oilers Entertainment Group. The Oilers made the announcement Wednesday at an unveiling of the refurbished Gretzky statue at the team’s new arena, Rogers Place.

Sidelined Buffalo Sabres center Jack Eichel is out indefinitely after injuring his left ankle in practice. The team does not know the extent of Eichel’s injury. Eichel was in front of the net when he got tangled up with a defenseman and his leg buckled beneath him.

Injured Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron is day-to-day with a lower-body injury and did not make the trip Wednesday for the Bruins’ regular-season opener against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday. Bergeron was injured at the end of practice Tuesday, but the Bruins would not elaborate on the injury or how it occurred.

Announced Houston Rockets guard Bobby Brown asked for forgiveness from Chinese citizens after drawing heavy criticism in China for inscribing his name and number on the country’s Great Wall. Writing on the Great Wall is prohibited. Brown later wrote on a Chinese blog, “I respect the Chinese culture, I made an honest mistake.”

Reported A woman who alleges Baylor University ignored her when she reported being raped by a former football player wants ex-coach Art Briles to be added as a defendant to the federal lawsuit. The complaint filed in March by Jasmin Hernandez named Briles, ex-athletic director Ian McCaw and university regents as defendants. Briles and McCraw were removed from the suit after lawyers argued that the men could not be sued in their official role under the Title IX federal gender discrimination law. Hernandez’s lawyers filed an amended complaint that cites state negligence laws as the reason for including them as defendants in their individual capacities.

Named Argentina’s Emiliano Grillo was voted PGA Tour rookie of the year. Grillo received his award at the Safeway Open, where he is the defending champion. Smylie Kaufman and Si Woo Kim also won last season as rookies, though Grillo finished the highest in the FedEx Cup at No. 11.