Nine former NHL players filed major class action lawsuits against the National Hockey League in a U.S. District Court on Thursday, alleging that the league has generated billions of dollars while subjecting its players to the imminent risk of head trauma leading to devastating and long-term negative health consequences. The players in the suit - Dan LaCouture, Dan Keczmer, Jack Carlson, Richard Brennan, Brad Maxwell, Mike Peluso, Tom Younghans, Allan Rourke and Scott Bailey - are represented by Robbins Geller, the firm that won over $7 billion for victims of the 2001 Enron fraud. "As opposed to other elite-level ice hockey organizations, like the European ice hockey leagues and the Olympics, the NHL fostered and promoted an extremely physical game of ice hockey," read the complaint. "Through enclosed rink designs and lax rules for fighting, the NHL vectored a culture of extreme violence and packaged the spoils to adoring fans. "The NHL has failed and continues to fail to warn its players of these risks and consequences of head trauma, concealing material scientific and anecdotal information from its players. The NHL has failed to institute policies and protocols that could have and will protect its players from suffering or exacerbating head trauma sustained during practice or in games. "Specifically, despite the fact that the NHLs violent game design induces head trauma, including concussions, the NHL has failed and continues to fail to warn its players of the risks to their lives and the devastating and long-term negative health effects. In fact, the NHL affirmatively concealed specific anecdotal evidence from players and scientific evidence about the health risks and consequences associated with playing in the NHL, including head injuries. To maintain its billions in revenue, the NHL also purposefully failed to institute policies and protocols that would protect its players from exacerbating injuries sustained during practice or in games." The NHL will release a statement on Thursday afternoon addressing the lawsuits. More to follow. Nike Blzer Cheap . It was a loss. But it was also a learning experience. Deron Williams and Joe Johnson had 24 points each to lift Brooklyn to a 94-87 win over the Raptors, making their first playoff appearance since 08. "I thought we played a little bit as expected as it is our first playoff game," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. Wholesale Nike Blazer . (AP) -- The head of the committee that developed Major League Baseballs plan to expand instant replay says he is optimistic the system will be in place this season, even though owners and unions for players and umpires have yet to approve. http://www.wholesalenikeblazer.com/. City, fielding a depleted team having already qualified, was twice pegged back by the plucky Czech champions but substitute Negredo tapped home in the 78th minute and Dzekos header made sure of victory in the 89th. The result kept City three points behind Bayern Munich ahead of their meeting in Germany in two weeks. Cheap Blazer For Sale . The attacking midfielder arrives on a free transfer from Spains Malaga. The 28-year-old joins Scottish striker Kenny Miller and Argentine midfielder Matias Laba as designated players on the Whitecaps roster. Wholesale Blazer China .com) - James Harden put the Houston Rockets on his back and willed them to an overtime victory on Thursday.AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Andre Drummond had his best night on the boards. He was happier about another rare feat. Drummond had 17 points and a career-high 26 rebounds to match a single-season franchise record with his 44th double-double, helping the Detroit Pistons surge to beat the New York Knicks 96-85 Monday night in a matchup of slumping teams. The Pistons had lost four straight and seven of eight. "Im just happy we won the game," Drummond said when asked about his career-high rebounding total. Drummonds 26 rebounds matched Houstons Dwight Howard for the most in an NBA game this season. "Hes a young, explosive player," New Yorks Tyson Chandler said. "We missed a lot of shots, so we helped him out." New York has dropped seven straight games and 13 of 15. "Im running out of comments," Carmelo Anthony said. And, the Knicks are running out of time to rally for a spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs. "Its not over yet," Amare Stoudemire insisted. It looked like the Knicks skid might end after Anthony scored 10 of his 28 points in a first quarter in which they led by as much as 14 and were ahead 28-20 when it ended. "We started off slow and let them be comfortable," Drummond said. The second-year centre said the plan was to start making Anthony uncomfortable, and it worked. The Pistons outscored New York by three points in the second quarter, 30-20 in the third and started the fourth quarter with eight unanswered points. "We got a string of stops, but we couldnt convert on the other end," Anthony said. The Knicks, who started 8 of 15 from the field, were 9 of 18 in the first quarter. Anthony made his first four shots — all from the outside — for 10 points in six-plus minutes as New York led 14-4. Stoudemire, who scored eight points in the first quarter, made a driving dunk to lift the Knicks to a 25-11 lead. Over the next three quarters, New York barely connected on one-third of its shots. "A game like this is very disappointing," Chandler said. "When you have that kind of lead and when you have that kind of control of the game,, you should be able to win.dddddddddddd "We just went flat and let them take over." J.R. Smith missed a lot of attempts before closing 5 of 17 from the field and scoring 16 points for the Knicks. New Yorks Raymond Felton made only 1 of 9 shots and acknowledged his personal life might be affecting him professionally. He was charged last month with criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree and criminal possession of a firearm. "Obviously if youre dealing with something, its on your mind," Felton said. "But I try not to let that come into my job." New Yorks third guard, Tim Hardaway Jr., was 0 for 6 in front of some fans who cheered for the rookie at Michigan. "I thought our defence was pretty solid, but our offence fell apart in the second half," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said. "We were just flat, and we couldnt get anything going from the outside. Raymond didnt hit anything. J.R. didnt hit anything. Timmy didnt hit anything. We cant ask two guys to score all our points." Stoudemire had 22 points — one short of his season high — despite playing sparingly in the fourth quarter. He was on the court for 32 minutes, a day after facing the Chicago Bulls, after recently being slowed by an injured left ankle. "I feel great," he said. "Its a great sign." Detroit reserves Rodney Stuckey and Will Bynum each scored 16 points, helping their teams bench outscore New Yorks 36-7. Greg Monroe had 11 points and nine rebounds for the Pistons, who are trying to climb up in the Eastern Conference standings to earn a spot in the playoffs for the first time since 2009. NOTES: Drummond matched a team double-double mark set by Bill Laimbeer during the 1983-84 season that was equaled by Grant Hill in the 1995-96 season. ... New Yorks Kenyon Martin, whose sore left ankle is still in a protective boot, said is scheduled to have his injury evaluated on Thursday. ... Detroits Josh Smith scored 15 points on 5 of 17 shooting. ... The Knicks lost a regular-season series against Detroit for the first time since the 2006-07 season. Wholesale HoodiesNFL Shirts OutletJerseys NFL WholesaleCheap NFL Jerseys Free ShippingWholesale Jerseys CheapCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '