RIP

Former Washington Capitals forward Stephen Peat -- a second-round pick in the 1998 NHL draft -- has sadly died from injuries he sustained in a recent car accident.

The NHL Alumni Association announced the sad news Thursday ... revealing Peat was involved in the tragic wreck "just over two weeks ago."

Further details surrounding the incident were not made immediately available.

Johnny Wactor's mom is devastated over the potential 5-year sentence one of the suspects in her son's murder case is facing ... telling TMZ she believes he's got zero remorse for his alleged role in the crime.

Scarlett Wactor tells TMZ she fears Leonel Gutierrez, 18 -- who pleaded guilty to attempted robbery and grand theft charges in connection with the case -- was merely charged with whatever was available for his alleged participation. But, she thinks that's not good enough.

Scarlett believes he'll probably only end up serving 1-2 years due to prison overcrowding ... and then will walk free to live a full life -- something Johnny will never get the chance to do.

Detroit Lions legend and Pro Football Hall of Famer Joe Schmidt passed away on Wednesday, the team announced. He was 92 years old.

"Joe Schmidt had the heart of a Lion," team owner Martha Firestone Ford said on Thursday ... "which made it appropriate that he was also the heart of our team."

"Joe was a key part of our Championship seasons and continued to be an important part of our organization until his passing."

Illia "Golem" Yefimchyk -- known by many as "The Mutant," and dubbed the "Most Monstrous Bodybuilder" -- has sadly died following a heart attack.

According to local media in Belarus, "Golem" suffered a heart attack on September 6 while at home with his wife, who tried all she could to save her husband ... performing chest compressions while waiting for first responders to arrive.

Yefimchyk was flown to the hospital by helicopter, where he slipped into a coma. His death was confirmed on Wednesday on social media by @whoisthebestbb.

One of 4 suspects charged in the Johnny Wactor murder case has pled guilty to attempted robbery and grand theft charges.

Leonel Gutierrez, 18, is free on bond while he awaits sentencing in November ... and faces up to 5 years in prison.

The "General Hospital" actor was shot and killed back in May after leaving his job as a bartender in downtown L.A. Prosecutors say he was shot by one of the suspects, Robert Barceleau, in the chest after confronting a group of men allegedly trying to steal the catalytic converter from his car.

Frankie Beverly, the legendary soul singer and founder of the funk band Maze, has died.

The singer’s family announced his death on Facebook Wednesday ... keeping the cause of death private and asking for space as they grieve.

Beverly's said in their statement, "He lived his life with pure soul, as one would say, and for us, no one did it better. He lived for his music, family and friends. Love one another as he would want that for us all."

Bobby Graves, who went by Caleb on his popular TikTok account, expressed concern about the Disneyland Half Marathon ... a day before he collapsed at the finish line and died shortly afterward.

The late internet personality uploaded a video to his 18K followers hours before the race, saying he was "marginally worried" due to the raging heatwave in Southern California.

As the temperature in Anaheim reached triple digits, Caleb said he was nervous about participating in the theme park's Halloween Half Marathon, given his "susceptibility" to heat.

Peter Renaday -- best known as the original voice of Master Splinter on the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" animated TV show -- has died, TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement tells TMZ cops did a welfare check at Peter’s Burbank home Sunday after receiving a call, and they found him dead inside. The death appears to be natural and isn’t being handled as a medical examiner case.

Peter's niece, Mindy Zachary tells TMZ his cause of death is unclear, but she notes Peter's air conditioning had been out, and with Los Angeles’ recent heatwave, temperatures inside his home in the Valley had reached the 90s.

WWE's Monday Night Raw went down live in Calgary on Monday ... and the wrestling promotion and one of its Superstars paid tribute to the lives of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau, after an alleged drunk driver tragically killed the brothers.

The emotional tribute in Calgary -- where Johnny spent the first seven years of his NHL career -- started off with Sami Zayn rockin' a Flames jersey with Gaudreau's number 13 as fans in the arena sang along to his music.

It didn't stop there ... after a segment involving Zayn, WWE kicked it to reporters outside the arena, showing off a massive display fans created outside the arena in honor of the brothers.

Chester Bennington's son Jaime says he's getting death threats from Linkin Park fans after criticizing the band’s controversial lead singer, Emily Armstrong.

Jaime claimed in an IG vid Monday people have been sending him nasty messages, including some telling him to kill himself and questioning whether he truly understands what his dad would want if Chester were alive today.

Jaime highlighted the hypocrisy in their messages, saying if they really understood how his dad died, they’d realize their trolling comments are inappropriate, and way off. Chester died by suicide in 2017.

2:08 PM PT -- Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital tells TMZ Sports that Dickson Ndiema's cause of death was due to "inhalation burns and sepsis with resultant pulmonary edema."

Pulmonary edema happens when too much fluid is in the lungs which makes it difficult for someone to breathe.

The ex-boyfriend of Ugandan Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei has died from the injuries he sustained after allegedly killing the runner in a fiery attack, according to local reports.

Dickson Ndiema succumbed to the ailments at a local hospital, authorities said. At the time, it was reported he suffered severe burns in the domestic violence incident that claimed Cheptegei's life.

"At the ICU he developed respiratory failure as a result of the severe airway burns and sepsis that led to his eventual death on Monday at 6:30 PM despite life-saving measures," Kenya's Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital CEO Dr. Philip Kirwa said.

James Earl Jones, one of Hollywood's most instantly recognizable voices for his roles in the 'Star Wars' movies and "The Lion King" ... is dead.

The actor's reps say he passed away Monday morning at his home in upstate New York, surrounded by family members.

James was widely respected for his decades-long career in stage, TV and film productions -- most notably, perhaps, he delivered the booming and menacing voice of Darth Vader in multiple movies in the 'Star Wars' franchise.

New York Mets Hall of Famer Ed Kranepool died on Sunday after suffering from cardiac arrest in Florida, the team announced. He was 79 years old.

The team shared the sad news in a statement on Monday ... with Steve and Alex Cohen saying they were "heartbroken" to learn of his passing.

"He was an original Met, who debuted at age 17 in 1962," the owners said. "After starring at James Monroe High School in the Bronx, he would go on to play for his hometown team for the next 18 years, the longest-tenured player in franchise history, appearing in 1,853 games with the Mets."

Meredith and Madeline Gaudreau -- the wives of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau -- just gave eulogies to their husbands a little over a week after they were tragically killed by a suspected drunk driver ... and the two speeches were heartbreaking.

The funeral for the NHL superstar and his little bro took place at St. Mary Magdalen Church in Pennsylvania -- the same venue where the brothers' sister was set to tie the knot just before the two passed away.

Madeline took to the podium first ... and thanked everyone for their outpouring of support -- before she spoke about when she first met Matthew.

Mariah Carey's back rehearsing ... belting out a few notes in a new Instagram post -- and referencing her recent difficult weeks.

The singer-songwriter shared the clip to IG early Sunday morning ... marking her first post since announcing her mother and sister passed away on the same day.

In it, MC sings "It's Like That" in the clip ... singing out the notes while a pianist accompanies her. She flashes a bright white smile at the camera during her mini performance.

The new Netflix documentary on Steve McNair's murder has left fans with more questions than answers ... and a former cop tells TMZ Sports that in order to fully get to the bottom of it all, police should now reopen the case.

The man who's desperately trying to figure out what actually happened to the ex-NFL star is Vincent Hill -- who briefly appeared in "Untold: The Murder of Air McNair," a Netflix doc that explored the life and death of McNair.

In the program, Hill -- a former Nashville Police Dept. officer who's since become a private investigator -- made a case that McNair might have been gunned down in his Tennessee condo by a male assailant ... not his mistress, Sahel "Jenni" Kazemi.