The Bruins announced early on Saturday that tickets for the club's first three home playoff games in the Eastern Conference finals against the Lightning will go on sale at 4 p.m. EST on Saturday, May 7.

Fans can purchase tickets at the TD Garden Box Office, on the Boston Bruins website, or by calling Ticketmaster at 1-800-745-3000.

If the Bruins and Lightning series reaches its conclusion in four games, fans that purchased tickets to Game 5 at TD Garden will receive a full refund from the organization.

The schedule for the upcoming series has not yet been released by the National Hockey League.

Fans interested in learning more about Boston Bruins players, or ticket options, should visit the team website at www.bostonbruins.com/ or call 617-624-BEAR.

Pacquiao, who was highly favored by the crowd, weighed in at 2 pounds lighter than Mosley  at the event held at the MGM Grand Hotel's Garden Arena. Nearly 6,500 fans showed up for the weigh-in for the World Boxing Organization welterweight title fight, according to Reuters.

Mosley weighed in at 147 pounds at the event, while Pacquiao tipped the scale at 145 pounds.

The Filipino congressman may be the 6-1 favorite to win the fight, but he's not expecting an easy matchup with Mosley.

"I believe that Shane Mosley is a strong fighter, a good fighter," Pacquaio said. "He has trained hard for this fight so I have to train hard and focus on this fight."

And even though most of the crowd was cheering for his opponent, Mosley was thrilled by the masses of fans, and says he's looking forward to the fight.

"I am just so excited to be in this fight," Mosley said. "The whole world is watching. It should be great."

The welterweight title fight is set for Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The bout is scheduled to start at 9 p.m. EST

The Rays will honor the U.S. Navy Seal Team 6 by wearing commemorative T-shirts on their Thursday night flight from Tampa to Baltimore, Tampa Bay Online reports. Team 6, of course, is the special unit responsible for tracking and killing bin Laden on Sunday in Pakistan.

'[It's] a tribute to their teamwork that enabled them to carry out the mission that they did several days ago," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "Teamwork being involved in what we do on a daily basis, what you see the Lightning doing right now, what you see the Bucs do and you see our military do.

"The military is such a big part of our community. It's such a tribute to them and their training and their attitude and the difficult odds they're working against all the time. And look what it's done for the country right now. It's really picked everybody up, everybody's got that good feeling about themselves right now, which is very contagious, so it's a tribute to the Navy Seal Team 6 and all the teams out there."

The Rays will also be wearing Tampa Bay Lightning hats on their trip in support of their journey to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Lightning completed their sweep of the top-ranked Washington Capitals on Wednesday night.

The Team 6 commemorative T-shirts were printed by Treasure Island Tees, check out the design below.

The official airline of the 2012 Olympics will not allocate one dime of their £40 million ($65.6 million) advertising budget toward television ads. Instead, they are using national print media, and online advertising, the Guardian reports.

The campaign has another interesting twist, as the first advertising segment will feature notorious English chef Heston Blumenthal, actor Richard E. Grant, and artist Tracey Emin encouraging aspiring chefs, actors and artists to enter a competition to work with one of the three "celebrity mentors."

The contestants will compete for the opportunity to design an Olympic menu to be used during British Airway flights, write a script for a short film that will be shown on BA flights and in the Olympic ceremony, or create a piece of artwork for the "celebration aircraft."

The second push of the campaign, which will launch at the end of May, will highlight British Airways-sponsored athletes who are aspiring to join the Great Britain Olympic team.

"We decided to use press and online to sustain the campaign for a long period of time," British Airways head of brands, Abigail Comber said. "We will support it with YouTube and virals. We have got the budget [for TV advertising]; it is not about that. It is about targeting the right place at the right time and there wasn't the flexibility with TV."

The 2012 London Olympics campaign is British Airways' largest sponsorship campaign in the company's history.

"This campaign is standout in terms of its longevity, most campaigns are a lot more tactical, selling products over just a two- or three-month period," Comber said. "This is our largest-ever sustained campaign stretching over 12 months."

It was announced on Wednesday that President Barack Obama has decided that he will not release the photos of Osama bin Laden’s body to the public in order to prevent a threat to U.S. national security, The Vancouver Sun reports. Obama likened the release of the classified photos to spiking a football after a touchdown.

“It is very important for us to make sure that very graphic photos of somebody that was shot in the head are not floating around as an incitement to additional violence or as a propaganda tool,” Obama said on 60 Minutes. “That’s not who we are. We don’t trot this stuff out as trophies.

“The fact of the matter is this was somebody who was deserving of the justice that he received, and I think Americans and people around the world are glad that he is gone. But we don’t need to spike the football.”

Some have already opposed President Obama’s decision, citing that the public exposure of the photos would not only provide proof of bin Laden’s death, but would also serve as a threat to other terrorists.

“Show photo as warning to others seeking America’s destruction,” former Alaska governor Sarah Palin wrote on her Twitter page. “No pussy-footing around, no politicking, no drama;it’s part of the mission.”

However, Obama insists that the bin Laden is indeed dead, and providing the photographic proof is not necessary to ease the minds of Americans.

“There is no doubt that Osama bin Laden is dead. Certainly there is no doubt among al-Qaeda members that he is dead,” Obama said. “So we don’t think that a photograph in and of itself is going to make any difference. There are going to be some folks who deny it. The fact of the matter is, you will not see bin Laden walking on this Earth again.”

Steelers safety Ryan Clark spoke out about Mendenhall's tweets — where the Pittsburgh running back questioned the response of those who were celebrating the terrorist's death — on Wednesday on SiriusXM's Mad Dog Radio, and the nine-year NFL veteran had some strong feelings regarding social media, msnbc.com reports.

"Social media is ruining the world," Clark said of his initial reaction to Mendenhall's tweets.  "Facebook and Twitter are probably going to be responsible for more divorces than infidelity coming up here soon."

Twitter and Facebook have been at the center of several athlete controversies in the recent past, and Clark says he is consistently warning his family about the dangers of social media.

"As I stress to my son at least once a week, anything he says on Twitter or Facebook can come back to haunt him," Clark said. "Though, in the grand scheme of things, Mendenhall isn't much older than my son, Mendenhall is an adult — and adults should be expected to realize the practical consequences of making statements in places where they can be read by anyone and everyone."

Though his stance against social media is clear, Clark refused to judge his teammate for expressing his opinions to the general public.

"I guess he's entitled to his opinion," Clark said. "He didn't claim that those opinions were shared by anyone else but himself. That was what he chose to put out there. I knew he was going to catch a lot of flak for it, I knew there was going to be a lot of backlash toward those comments, but he's entitled to put whatever he wants to put on his Twitter page.

"The thing you have to know these days, though, if you do put those type of things out there, people are going to comment on them," he added. "It's going to make news. It's going to be a big deal when you do something that controversial. As long as he can stand by his statements then he's free to do whatever he wants."

Mendenhall posted a blog entry on Wednesday to clarify the statements he made on his Twitter page, saying he "wasn't questioning" the evil in Osama bin Laden, but rather "reflecting on our own hypocrisy."

According to the SportsBusiness Journal, Judge Claudia Wilken for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed a complaint against EA Sports in O'Bannon's licensing case.

The former UCLA star power forward filed a lawsuit against EA Sports, the NCAA and the College Licensing Company in 2009 on the grounds they were using his image and likeness without his consent. O'Bannon served as the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, representing several other NCAA Division I men's basketball and football players that joined in on the suit.

"This purported conspiracy involves Defendants' concerted action to require all current student-athletes to sign forms each year that purport to require each of them to relinquish all rights in perpetuity for use of their images, likenesses and/or names and to deny compensation 'through restrictions in the NCAA Bylaws," Judge Wilken's ruling read. "The Consolidated Amended Complaint, however, does not contain any allegations to suggest that EA agreed to participate in this conspiracy."

O'Bannon's claims against the NCAA and the College Licensing Company will continue to proceed in district court.

Now, the former Celtics captain and coach will be honored in a similar way as Orr, as the Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation in partnership with the Bill Russell Legacy Committee have announced that they will erect a statue of Bill Russell in the city of Boston. The statue is set to be designed by a local artist.

Though the location for the statue has not been announced, it will likely join Orr’s statue outside the TD Garden. The Orr statue was unveiled on May 10, 2010, capturing Orr’s notorious reaction after scoring “The Goal” in the 1970 Stanley Cup Finals.

In addition to the statue, the Bill Russell Legacy Project will also develop a Mentoring Grant program in Russell’s name, in commemoration of his dedication to human rights and youth mentoring throughout his career.

“We are honored to play a role in paying tribute to such an extraordinary athlete, leader and legacy,” Celtics managing partner/co-owner and president of the Shamrock Foundation Stephen Pagliuca said. “Bill Russell will forever be remembered in Boston, and it’s fitting that the ultimate benefactors of his legacy will be future generations of our beloved city’s youth.”

The Celtics Shamrock Foundation has established a Bill Russell Legacy Fund to serve as the primary source of funding for the project. Fans can donate to the project and to the Mentoring Grant program by visiting the Bill Russell legacy website.

Russell won 11 NBA championships with the Celtics, playing with the C’s for 13 years before serving as the coach for three. He was a cornerstone of the Celtics’ franchise during the dynasty years, and holds the record (along with former Montreal Canadiens’ center Henri Richard) for most championships won by an athlete in a North American sports league.

“I am uncomfortable with honors such as this but my years as captain of the Boston Celtics were the proudest moments of my career,” Russell said of the statue honor. “Mayor [Tom] Menino‘s Boston has proven to be a city that embraces the diverse contributions of all its people and neighborhoods. I am thankful to the Celtics and all the contributors for the effort to create such a wonderful mentoring program.”

Clearly, Angels fans still felt the need to express a few sour grapes toward the speedy outfielder for turning down their offer and deciding to take the $142 million offer from Boston instead. It was a strange occurrence, that's for sure, but is it the strangest thing ever thrown at a baseball game?

Fans have an ideal perch above the baseball field, and while it's a great vantage point to watch a game, it also gives angry fans great leverage if they feel like expressing their feelings through objects thrown onto the field.

Crawford wasn't the first Red Sox outfielder to be the on-field target of angry fans. Back in 1999, a few Phillies fans, frustrated by the fact that J.D. Drew had opted not to play in Philadelphia two years earlier, threw a multitude of batteries at him while he was playing in the outfield. The situation was so disruptive that Drew had to be escorted off the field while the field crew cleaned up the sea of batteries that littered the ground.

Many baseball fans have made their displeasure with Barry Bonds' alleged steroid use known, but one fan at Petco Park in San Diego really wanted to get his point across when Bonds' Giants were visiting the Padres in 2006. The fan threw an actual syringe in Bonds' direction while he was standing on the field. Bonds himself removed the syringe, tossing it away from the field so that no one would get hurt.

As one of the main staples of taking in a baseball game, it comes as no surprise that food has found its way onto the baseball field on multiple occasions, but there are a few moments more memorable than others.

Phillies outfielder Shane Victorino filed a police report after he was showered with a beer in center while going up for a fly ball at Wrigley Field in 2009. The Flyin' Hawaiian still made the out, but he wanted to make sure the outfield offender was punished for dousing him with a brew.

And then of course we have the notorious "pizza incident" at Fenway Park that sent NESN broadcasters Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy into hysterics. Though this didn't involve a player, it did involve a play that brought Angels outfielder Garrett Anderson over to the stands to try and catch a foul ball. In the process, he knocked over two fans' beers, which triggered another fan to throw a slice of pizza at the soaked Sox fans.

What is the strangest thing ever thrown by a fan at a baseball game? Share your thoughts below.

Tuesday, May 3: What's the best role for Jed Lowrie on the Red Sox?

What's the strangest thing ever thrown by a fan at a baseball game?Market Research

ESPN The Magazine recently compiled a list of the highest-paid athletes in 30 sports across the globe, and it may come as a surprise that some professional athletes made less than $50,000 in the 2010 season or calendar year.

There was a tie for the highest-paid sport in the world between baseball and boxing. Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez and boxer Manny Pacquiao tied for the highest salaries, as they both raked in $30 million in 2010.

Basketball and soccer weren't far behind when it came to big paychecks as Kobe Bryant ($24.8 million) and Cristiano Ronaldo ($19.5 million) ranked atop their respective sports when it came to the 2010 salary. As for football, Peyton Manning led the NFL in 2010 with a $15.8 million salary to quarterback the Indianapolis Colts.

There was a tie for the highest-paid hockey player between Roberto Luongo and Vincent Lecavalier, who each earned $10 million in 2010. The highest-paid poker star wasn't far behind the veteran NHLers, as Canadien professional Jonathan Duhamel won nearly $9.5 million across various events last year, though he donated $100,000 of his winnings to the Montreal Canadiens Children's Foundation.

Women's bowling came in as the lowest-paying sport in 2010, as Shannon Pluhowsky won a total of $40,300 in the 2009-10 calendar year. The men's side fared a bit better, with Walter Ray Williams Jr. winning $152,670 in PBA events in 2009-10.

In case you were wondering, the average mailman earns approximately $60,000 per year.

Check out all the highest-paid athletes' salaries here.

The buzz surrounding Mendenhall's stance on the Osama bin Laden killing erupted on Tuesday, as the running back expressed a surprising opinion on America's reaction to the terrorist's death.

Mendenhall did not stop there, after a few more comments questioning the response to the incident, he went on to question the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City.

Mendenhall has since deleted the comment, and has stayed off his Twitter account since then — a smart move considering the heat he's taken for his activity earlier in the day.

His final tweet of the day insisted that he "does not have an ignorant bone in his body," and that he only wants to encourage others to "think."

Kraft, the oldest son of Patriots owner Robert Kraft, recently sat in for an interview on WEEI's The Big Show to explain his opinion from the owner's side of the table.

According to Kraft, it's the players that are to blame for the current situation, as the Patriots' president reiterated that it was the players that stood up and walked away from the CBA negotiations in March.

"We were negotiating in the first part of March under the guidance of the federal mediator and from the NFL's perspective we thought we had put fair things on the table and we're having rational dialogue," Kraft said. "The players, I know there is a lot of rhetoric that flies around about this, the players were the ones who got up from that table, walked out of the room, decertified, and filed an anti-trust lawsuit. That's the timeline and those are the facts."

Kraft insisted that negotiations were moving in the right direction before the union decertified, and said the only way the NFL is going to get back to "true operations of the National Football League" is to get back to the negotiating table, rather than continue in court.

"Because at the end of the deal, it's not going to get worked out through litigation and through a court system," Kraft said. "It's going to get worked out when two business parties sit across the table from each other. We didn't start the legal proceedings. The players did and hopefully we can convince them that litigation isn't the right path and that negotiation is. Unfortunately so far we haven't been able to do that."

 Despite the current league situation, Kraft remains optimistic that there will be football in Week 1 of the 2011 season.

"I'm a glass is half full kind of guy. Well look, here's the bottom line: we had the draft last night. I think it was pretty exciting," he said. "Look, until the end of July when training camp is open, yes OTA's and mini-camps might not be taking place like they normally have, but I think I believe we will have a season and a full season."

In fact, the Bruins absolutely need to improve in certain areas if they want to advance past the second round for the first time in nearly 20 years. There are the more general areas that need improvement – like the power play, for instance — but there are also some individuals who need to turn their play around to help propel the B’s to victory.

So which player needs to have the biggest bounce-back series against the Flyers in order for the Bruins to come away with the series’ win?

Boston fans know what Milan Lucic is capable of, and they haven’t seen much production out of the first-line winger in the postseason. Lucic posted just two points in the first-round series with Montreal, but he looked like he was improving by the time Game 7 rolled around. The B’s will need his strength and grit in front of the net against the physical Flyers, that’s for sure.

Lucic’s linemate, David Krejci, has also been experiencing a slow postseason, something we haven’t seen from the talented centerman in quite some time. Krejci has just one point so far in the 2011 playoffs, but his numbers in previous postseasons indicate he’ll have more to prove as time goes on. Let’s just hope it comes out sooner rather than later.

The Bruins brought in veteran defenseman Tomas Kaberle for two main reasons, to quarterback the power play and to step up during the playoffs, and he’s struggled to deliver on both fronts since arriving in February. Kaberle has not proven he can stand up against physical play, but he’ll need to against this tough Flyers team.

We didn’t see much out of the Bruins’ trusty captain, Zdeno Chara, in the Montreal series, but the fact that he suffered dehydration and lost 12 pounds may have something to do with that. It looks like the big man is getting back on track and gaining the weight he needs to maintain that imposing stance on the Bruins’ blue line. He’ll be a key cog in this series against the Flyers’ talented attack.

Which Bruins player needs to have the biggest bounce-back series against the Flyers in order for the Bruins to win? Share your thoughts below.

Wednesday, April 27: Who will win Game 7 of Bruins-Canadiens series?

Which Bruins player needs to have the biggest bounce-back series against the Flyers for Bruins to win?survey software

Quarterbacks were a hot selection on Day 2, and the Patriots picked one of their own when they selected Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett. There had been a few hints that Mallett was on the Pats' radar, and they scooped him up with their 74th pick.

Mallett is the leader of the quarterback pack when it comes to his arm, and though his Patriots' future is unknown, he definitely has some great potential in the league.

The former Razorback led his team to a 10-2 record in 2010, throwing for 3,869 yards with 32 touchdowns on the year. In his career at Arkansas, Mallet set or matched 43 school or stadium records, including the all-time record for passing touchdowns (62) and passing yards (7,493).

Mallett was named Second Team All-SEC in the 2010 season, and was named a finalist for the Manning Award in both the 2009 and 2010 seasons.

After using their 56th pick to select Cal running back Shane Vereen, they selected another running back, Lousiana State junior Stevan Ridley with their 73rd pick.

The Patriots are clearly looking for future team leaders, as Ridley was named permanent offensive team captain for the Tigers in the 2010 season. The 6-foot junior was the starting running back in 2010, after serving as a backup in his first two seasons at LSU.

Ridley rushed for 1,147 yards and 15 touchdowns in his final season with the Tigers, including 105 yards and a touchdown in the Cotton Bowl victory over Texas A&M in 2010.

The running back was named First Team All-SEC in the coaches vote and Second Team All-SEC in The Associated Press vote in his final season at Louisiana State.

The Pats selected California running back Shane Vereen, a self-described "all-around back," that the New England staff had been eyeing during his pro day workouts.

The 5-foot-10 junior rushed for 1,167 yards and 13 touchdowns last season at Cal, finishing his collegiate career with 2,834 total rushing yards. Vereen played in every single game in his career at Cal, starting in 19 of them.

Though he left the Golden Bears after three years, Vereen is leaving his stamp on the program's record books, tying for third all-time in rushing touchdowns (29) and ranking seventh all-time in rushing yards.

Vereen also made a splash at the NFL combine, finishing first amongst running backs with the most bench press reps (31).

Check out some of Vereen's collegiate highlights in the video below.

One thing we can usually depend on each season, however, is Belichick's trade activity throughout the draft. Often one of the most active teams in the draft, the Patriots have been known to trade down to achieve more picks in lower rounds and future drafts.

Staying true to form, the Patriots pulled a fairly predictable move in the first round of the 2011 draft on Thursday, trading their 28th pick to the New Orleans Saints for the 56th pick and a 2012 first rounder.

Belichick passionately defends his draft philosophy, and has plenty of examples of past draft successes to back up his current strategy, but how do you feel about it?

Do you like Bill Belichick's draft philosophy?survey software

Bodog has unveiled the updated Stanley Cup odds, and if you're a fan that can handle the added pressure of putting a wager on the Black and Gold, then these numbers might help you out. The Bruins have been given 8-to-1 odds to hoist the cup, the exact same odds as their second-round opponent, the Philadelphia Flyers.

Check out all the 2011 Stanley Cup odds in the list below.

Vancouver Canucks: 11-4
Washington Capitals: 4-1
San Jose Sharks: 5-1
Detroit Red Wings: 11-2
Boston Bruins: 8-1
Philadelphia Flyers: 8-1
Tampa Bay Lightning: 12-1
Nashville Predators: 14-1

The Bruins have 11-to-4 odds to win the Eastern Conference championship, just behind the Capitals at 13-to-10.

New England's selection comes at a bit of a surprise to fans, but Solder is a player that can definitely develop into one of the better tackles in the league in coming years. The left tackle was originally recruited as a tight end, but took to his role on the offensive line at Colorado, and was named First Team All-American in 2010.

The Buena Vista, Colo., native was also named the Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year in 2010 and allowed just five sacks in his three years as a starter.

Solder made the switch from tight end to tackle in the spring after his freshman season, and started every game of his sophomore, junior and senior seasons protecting the blind side for right-handed quarterbacks. He earned All-Big 12 honors in his junior and senior seasons with the Buffaloes.

Keep up with all the draft action on the NFL Draft live blog.

Click here to learn more about Solder's fit with the Patriots.

Andre Iguodala

The Sixers' shooting guard missed the obligatory exit meeting with Philadelphia head coach Doug Collins, team president Rod Thorn and general manager Ed Stefanski on Thursday after Philly was eliminated from the NBA playoffs by the Miami Heat on Wednesday night.

It was originally speculated by the Philadelphia Daily News that Iguodala had skipped the meeting altogether. However, reports later surfaced that Iguodala was excused for a doctor's appointment.

Once news broke that Iguodala had reportedly missed the meeting, concerns were raised as to whether or not the shooting guard would return to Philadelphia for the 2011-12 season. There are ongoing rumors that Iguodala will be making a move to another NBA team soon, but he expressed optimism toward the Sixers' future after Wednesday night's elimination.

"I never said I didn’t want to be here," Iguodala said on Thursday. "Like I said, I just want to compete for titles. We made a lot of strides this year. I think we're heading in the right direction.

"I think it’s something that I always dreamed about — playing in the league," he added. "Once I got here I always wanted to be in one place, not having to move around a lot, being comfortable in one spot. I still feel the same way. Being able to put a stamp on my career and in the Sixers' record books. I always think about that, keep climbing the charts with some of the greatest basketball players ever."