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DAVIE, Fla. -- New Miami Dolphins general manager Dennis Hickey stepped to the microphone and apologized for his hoarse voice, explaining he wore it down in recent days trying to build a winner. Hickey then introduced a succession of big acquisitions in the first 24 hours of free agency -- 316-pound left tackle Branden Albert, 300-pound defensive tackle Earl Mitchell and 305-pound defensive tackle Randy Starks. All signed Wednesday. Starks remained with the Dolphins after a brief stint as a free agent, signing a $12 million, two-year contract. He spent the past six seasons with the Dolphins, with only one playoff game during that time. "The moves we made so far just show were close to doing something special here, and trying to bring in some people to help us get over the hump," he said. The return of Starks, a two-time Pro Bowl player, and the addition of Mitchell compensate for the loss of defensive tackle Paul Soliai, who joined the Atlanta Falcons after seven years with Miami. "Pauls a good player," Starks said. "He has been here a long time. Hell be well missed, but we have people who can step up." Hickeys shopping will continue, with additional offensive linemen, a tight end and a linebacker the most pressing needs. The Dolphins are trying to end a 13-year drought without a post-season victory, and theyre eager to put in the past their bullying scandal that involved tackle Jonathan Martin. The acquisition of Albert was a step in that direction. Hell take over the position manned at the start of last season by Martin, who was traded late Tuesday to the San Francisco 49ers for an undisclosed draft choice. "Im going to be here to play left tackle and make a difference," Albert said. "Thats the reason Im here. I feel like its a team I can help the most and make my legacy even better." Albert signed a $47 million, five-year deal that includes $26 million guaranteed. Dolphins officials, accompanied by a couple of players, treated Albert to dinner Tuesday night to celebrate the agreement. "Probably the happiest person at the dining room table was Ryan Tannehill," Hickey said. "He was really excited to have a player of his calibre on our team." Albert will protect the blind side for Tannehill, who was sacked a franchise-record 58 times last year. Mitchell was also part of the dinner celebration after agreeing to a $16 million, four-year deal. Like Albert and Starks, Mitchell envisions better days ahead for the Dolphins. "Im coming to produce and definitely trying to help this team reach new heights," Mitchell said. "Thats my reason for being here. Im trying to get us to a Super Bowl." Mitchell blossomed in his fourth NFL season with the Houston Texans last year, when he became a starter and won raves for the way he clogged the middle. He has been playing defence only since his junior year at the University of Arizona, and he and Hickey both said hes still improving. Alberts reputation has also been on the rise, and he made the Pro Bowl last year with the Kansas City Chiefs. He has had a home the past three offseasons 45 minutes from the Dolphins complex and will now move north, eager to go to work with his new team. "I live in downtown Miami, but I probably wont anymore because of the commute," he said with a smile. "Ive got to find a place close to the facility." Lorenzo Carter Giants Jersey . Next up is another showdown with Michigan. Payne scored 18 points, Branden Dawson had 14 and No. 22 Michigan State beat No. 12 Wisconsin 83-75 on Saturday to reach the Big Ten tournament championship. Kyle Lauletta Giants Jersey . Goldeyes third baseman Ryan Pineda drove in three runs and the pitching staff didnt allow an earned run, as Winnipeg downed Kansas City 6-3 in American Association exhibition action at CommunityAmerica Ballpark in Kansas. http://www.nygiantsfanatic.com/c-86-gian...art-jersey.aspx. Robert Griffin III, the No. 2 pick in the 2012 draft, set numerous rookie records and was picked AP Offensive Rookie of the Year for the Washington Redskins. New York Giants Jerseys . City has reached new heights under manager Manuel Pellegrini as they transition from big spending/immediate impact to perennial contender. Yaya Toures seeming discontent Tuesday may complicate that, as does the little issue of Financial Fair Play. Nate Solder Jersey .B. -- Canadas Rachel Homan opened the Ford Womens World Curling Championship with a 7-5 win over Russia on Saturday.The Boston Bruins begin their Eastern Conference title defence against an Original Six rival, as they host Game 1 of a best-of-seven series Thursday against the Detroit Red Wings. Catch the game on TSN and TSN GO starting at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. Considering the Bruins and Red Wings played in opposite conferences for decades, this playoff meeting is a rare treat for NHL fans. In fact, the last time these Original Six foes met in the postseason was in 1957 when neither clubs current coaches were born yet. Boston and Detroit have met seven times in the playoffs with the Bruins taking four of those encounters, including the 1957 semifinal round matchup. The Red Wings, however, have won three straight in the regular season against Boston and seven of the previous eight encounters. Bostons only victory in the 2013-14 season series was a 4-1 home win back on Oct. 5, while Detroit beat the Bruins as recently as April 2, when it picked up a 3-2 regulation win in the Motor City. Still, heading into the opening round of the playoffs the Bruins are once again the team to beat in the Eastern Conference and perhaps the entire NHL. Boston, which in 2011 won its first Stanley Cup since the days of Bobby Orr, is not only the defending East champions, but it also enters this postseason as winners of the 2013-14 Presidents Trophy. The clubs 117 points were the most gained by the franchise since 1971-72 (119 pts) and Boston finished as the top team in the regular season for the first time since 1989-90. Despite heading into the postseason with a ton of confidence, the Bruins know they cant afford to look past their first-round opponent. Boston made it to the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time in three seasons last spring, but before it fell in six games to the Chicago Blackhawks, the Bruins nearly lost in the first round to Toronto. The Bruins blew a 3-1 series lead against the Maple Leafs and needed to overcome a 4-1 third-period deficit in Game 7 to get past Toronto. It marked fourth straight Boston was a fourth seed in last springs matchup with Toronto, but the Bs shouldnt expect their No. 1 standing in the East to instill fear in the Detroit Red Wings this time around. It marked the third straight spring Boston went seven games in the first round. The Bruins beat Montreal four games to three in 2011 en route to its Stanley Cup title, but lost in seven the following season against Washington. "I dont know, it just seems to be the biggest battle for us and the hardest one to get through," Bruins forward Milan Lucic said of his clubs tendency to play long opening-round series. "I dont think its going to be any different heading into this series. So weve got to be prepared to bring our best because you talk about the last three years, you know the other team hasnt taken us lightly at all and theyve given us their best." Boston is known best as a big, physical team that is really tough to score against, but the club made considerable strides in the offensive end in 2013-14. The Bruins averaged just 2.62 goals per game during the lockout- shortened season before upping that scoring rate to 2.96 gpg in the 2013 playoffs. This season, Boston is third in the NHL with 3.15 gpg through 82 games and hopes to maintain that goal-scoring clip in the upcoming playoffs. Six Boston forwards finished the season with over 50 points this season. Leading the way on offense were David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron, the clubs top two centermen. Krejci dished out a club-best 50 assists to help him pace the Bs with 69 points, while Bergeron had 62 points and tied winger Jarome Iginla for the club lead with 30 goals. While Bostons forwards contribute to their clubs overall stinginess on defense, immense blueliner Zdeno Chara and steady goaltender Tuukka Rask get most of the credit. Rask is coming off a Vezina-caliber season, going 36-15-6 with a 2.04 goals against average and .930 save percentage. The 27-year-old Finn is looking to follow up his award-worthy campaign with another strong postseason. Rask was the anchor for Bostons run to the Cup Finals last spring, recording a 1.88 GAA and .940 save percentage in 22 playoff games. The 6-foot-9 Chara is a unique talent who combines size and skill to create havoc at both ends of the ice. The 2008-09 Norris Trophy winneer has a booming slap shot and recorded 17 goals and 40 points over 77 games this season and Bostons captain has racked up 54 points (13 goals, 41 assists) over 129 career playoff games.dddddddddddd The Red Wings may have moved from the Western Conference to the East prior to the 2013-14 campaign, but the end result was the same as Detroit qualified for the playoffs for a 23rd straight season. On paper, Detroit doesnt match up well with the mighty Bruins but the club doesnt figure to be an easy out so long as Mike Babcock is behind the bench. Babcock has been to the Cup Finals three times as a coach, winning it with Detroit in 2008, and also has led Team Canada to Olympic gold medals at the last two Winter Games. Last spring, the coach helped the seventh-seeded Red Wings eliminate the Pacific Division champion Anaheim Ducks in the first round. He also had the eventual Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks on the ropes in Round 2, but the Hawks won three straight to oust Detroit in seven games. This season, Babcock guided his club to the playoffs despite the club dealing with considerable injury problems all along the way. Detroit enters the playoffs reasonably healthy compared to other points of the season, but the club will begin the first round without captain Henrik Zetterberg (back surgery), fellow forwards Dan Cleary (sprained knee) Stephen Weiss (sports hernia surgery) and defenseman Jonathan Ericsson (finger surgery). Star forward Pavel Datsyuk also was limited to only 45 games this season, but he returned to the lineup earlier this month and is ready to go for Round 1. The Russian has amassed 103 points (36g, 67a) over 140 career playoff games. Faced with injuries to numerous key veterans, young forwards Gustav Nyquist and Tomas Tatar stepped up for the Red Wings in a big way down the stretch. That was particularly true of the 24-year-old Nyquist, who led Detroit with 28 goals this season in just 57 games. Nyquist has two goals and three assists over 18 career playoff games, but he could be ready for a breakout postseason after showing Babcock and the hockey world what he can do with increased playing time. Tatar, 23, added 19 goals and 20 assists in 73 games for the Red Wings this season. However, the young Slovakian winger has never skated in an NHL playoff game. As a whole, Detroits offense ranked 16th in the league this season with just 2.65 gpg. Niklas Kronwall is the clear No. 1 defenseman for Detroit in front of No. 1 goaltender Jimmy Howard. Kronwall has done a superb job of replacing fellow Swede Nicklas Lidstrom in that role. Lidstrom, of course, retired following the 2011-12 season, leaving seven Norris Trophy wins and a Hall of Fame legacy behind him. Kronwall led Detroit in average ice time with 24 minutes, 18 seconds of action a game. His 49 points (8g, 41a) more than doubled the offensive output of the clubs next- best defenseman Danny DeKeyser, who had 23 points on four goals and 19 assists. Howard, meanwhile, is coming off a mediocre regular season that saw him go 21-19-11 with a 2.66 GAA and .910 save percentage. The 30-year-old American had posted a 2.13 GAA in each of the previous two seasons and his save percentage was .920 or better in both campaigns. Over 42 career playoff games, Howard has compiled a 2.57 GAA and .918 save percentage. The injured Zetterberg led the Red Wings with three goals during the season series, while Tatar had two goals and two assists. Nyquist added two goals and a helper, while Howard was 1-1-0 with a 3.00 GAA. Rask struggled to a 1-3-0 record and 3.29 GAA in four games versus Detroit, while no Boston player had more than one goal in the series. Reilly Smith led the Bruins with four points -- all assists -- in four games. Boston, which also will host Detroit in Game 2 on Sunday, was an impressive 31-7-3 as the home team this season. The Red Wings were 21-15-5 on the road. Projected Bruins Lines Lucic - Krejci - IginlaMarchand – Bergeron - SmithFlorek - Soderberg - ErikssonCaron - Campbell - Thornton Chara - HamiltonMezaros - BoychuckKrug - Miller Projected Red Wings Lines Abdelkader - Datsyuk - Franzen Alfredsson - Helm - Jurco Tatar - Sheahan - NyquistMiller - Glendening - Legwand Kronwall - SmithDeKeyser - QuinceyLashoff - Kindl ' ' '