Justin Bailey is reaching out to a Buffalo-area youth hockey player who was subjected to racial slurs and taunts during a game in January.

BOCA RATON, Fla.-- In a continuing effort to further the Declaration of Principles, the NHL is participating in a player safety summit this week.

Welcome to This Is Hockey digest. Hockey is more than a game. It doesn't just offer exercise and excitement, it teaches teamwork and perseverance, and builds character and humility. It celebrates diversity, promotes equality and helps connect families. In short, it is a community inspired by a sport.

These are our stories. This is Hockey.

Edmonton native Andrew Ference grew up watching "Hockey Night in Canada." He's one of the few who eventually lived his dream of playing in the NHL, even reaching a career apex by winning the Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins in 2011. 

NEW YORK -- Harlem may not be known as a hotbed of hockey, but the NHL and New York Rangers are doing their part to make sure those in the area who want to play the game are able to.

Pat LaFontaine, a Hockey Hall of Famer and vice president of hockey development and community affairs for the NHL, will be speaking on Capitol Hill on Thursday to a group of staffers from The Hill and healthcare advocates about the impact of youth sports on child obesity. LaFontaine, the chief architect of hockey's Declaration of Principles, a vision statement positioning sports as a platform for participants to build character, foster positive values and develop important life skills, wrote an op-ed in The Hill on Oct. 15, pushing for the passing of the Personal Health Investment Today Act.

Here is the op-ed by LaFontaine: 

WASHINGTON -- The Stanley Cup was the star attraction, but the message was equally powerful at a policy briefing on shifting demographics and hockey's future at the Cannon House Office Building on Wednesday.

Pat LaFontaine looked no further than the Toronto Maple Leafs naming four-time Olympic gold medalist Hayley Wickenheiser an assistant director of player development as an example of the hockey community living the Declaration of Principles one year after its unveiling.

The DOP, unveiled in New York City on Sept. 6, 2017, was developed by and for 17 hockey stakeholders to advance policies, programs and initiatives to create the best possible experience for the entire hockey community. It embodies, in part, that all hockey programs should provide a safe, positive and inclusive environment for players and families regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation and socioeconomic status.

The NHL is among the 35 organizations on the short list for the 2018 Beyond Sport Global Awards.

There are no moments that stand out, no particular instances of leadership or commitment to service or humanitarian contributions, examples of humility or perseverance. It's not because there weren't those moments or those instances or those examples in the careers of Vancouver Canucks forwards Henrik and Daniel Sedin. It's because that was the everyday for the Sedin twins.

It's who they are. It's who they've always been. It wasn't about a moment or two. It was about each day, each week, each season, each dollar given, each hospital visit, each pick-me-up for a teammate, each time facing the difficult questions.

That's why it's fitting that, after announcing their retirement at the end of the 2017-2018 season, the Sedins were awarded the 2018 King Clancy Memorial Trophy on Wednesday, for the things they did for 17 seasons in the NHL, and the same things they expect to continue to do beyond their time in professional hockey.