LPA did a nice job of bringing this event back. A rousing success it was not. Ill give it a solid B-plus. -- Pierre LeBrunThe players clearly caredI look at

DAVIE, Fla. -- Miami Dolphins practice began Wednesday with center Mike Pouncey ailing and absent, left tackle Branden Albert working on the side under a trainers supervision, and left guard Laremy Tunsil shaking out the kinks in a sore shoulder that forced him out of last weeks game.The Dolphins have had a hard time keeping their best blockers on the field together, and they probably wont be there Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers.Its very worrisome, Albert said. When things are going good, you want to keep them going good.A healthy offensive line was a catalyst for Miamis turnaround, helping Jay Ajayi rush for 529 yards during a three-week stretch. That was part of the current five-game winning streak that has propelled the Dolphins (6-4) into the playoff hunt.But with Albert and Pouncey out last Sunday, and Tunsil missing the second half, Miami failed to convert its first 10 third-down chances and was shut out for 55 minutes before rallying past the Los Angeles Rams 14-10.Miamis left tackle in the second half was Sam Young, who replaced Tunsil, who had replaced Albert. Anthony Steen started for Pouncey, and Kraig Urbik started at left guard. The replacements might all be in the lineup again this week.It affects everyone, because you want consistency there, Ajayi said. But its next man up. Well play with whos in there.That might not be known until Sunday, coach Adam Gase said.Were still trying to figure it out, he said. Its going to take the whole week for us to know. So were going to be repping everybody and just try to take the whole time and figure out who its going to be.Albert, Pouncey and Tunsil have started only four games together, and Miami won them all. Their run blocking helped the Dolphins control the clock, keeping the defense fresher and more effective while easing the burden on quarterback Ryan Tannehill , who has committed only one turnover during the winning streak.San Francisco is 1-9 and ranked last in the NFL in defense, so the Dolphins might be able to get back for another week with backup blockers.Among the three who are ailing, Tunsil is the most likely to return Sunday. The rookie first-round draft pick was limited in practice Wednesday and afterward declined to discuss his status.Offensive coordinator Clyde Christensen estimated Tunsils chances of playing this week at 50-50, but said preparations will be made to go without all three first-teamers.I hope theyre all healthy, Christensen said. I hope they all make a miraculous recovery. But youve got to make your plan. Youve just kind of got to go with the knowledge youve got today, because otherwise you get your heart broken and you get projecting and making mistakes on the game plan.Albert is recovering from a dislocated left wrist that required five people to snap back into place. He has switched from a cast to a brace and said hell play Sunday if he has enough strength in his hand.Its coming along day by day, he said. I wouldnt rule me out. Ill be back sooner rather than later.Pounceys absence will likely be the longest. Sidelined by a recurring hip injury that also sidelined him for first four games of the year, hes a long shot to play Sunday.Right now its probably not going to look good for him, Gase said. Were going to be week to week.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL.---Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve-Wine. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/steven-wine Reggie White Jersey . -- Timbers coach Caleb Porter didnt stray from his business-like approach to the season even after Portland downed the two-time defending league champion Los Angeles Galaxy to gain crucial playoff position. Dexter Williams Packers Jersey . On Tuesday, Ottawa placed forward Cory Conacher and defenceman Joe Corvo on waivers as trade rumours swirl around the Senators. http://www.shoptheofficialpackers.com/Elite-Rashan-Gary-Packers-Jersey/ . After a first half in which he thought "the lid was on the basket," the Toronto Raptors coach watched his squad mount a second half surge to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 98-91. Jace Sternberger Youth Jersey . Emery skated the length of the ice and fought an unwilling Holtby during the third period of the Flyers 7-0 loss Friday night in Philadelphia. He was given 29 penalty minutes, including a game misconduct. But Emery did not face even a disciplinary hearing with NHL senior vice president of player safety Brendan Shanahan because rules 46. Elgton Jenkins Womens Jersey . Clarke was injured while practicing on the Doha Golf Club range after the pro-am on Tuesday. The Northern Irishman arrived at the course on Wednesday hoping to start, but after hitting a few balls on the practice putting green Clarke advised officials he was not fit to play. As the 2016 World Cup winds down, we wondered: Was the eight-team, best-on-best tournament a triumph for the sport? ?Our writers offered their thoughts.Well, first off define success. Did it make money for the National Hockey League and the players who organized the tournament? If its true that every ticket was sold then yes, that part of it was a success. Was the hockey good? Yes. I thought the World Cup featured more, better hockey than we saw at the Sochi Olympics, but nothing that compared to the hockey on display four years earlier in Vancouver at the 2010 Games.If success is measured in part by pure enjoyment of the product, then having Team North America dazzle us for three tournament games qualifies this World Cup as a rousing success. Europe, the other team that was made up just for this tournament, also far exceeded expectations if you want to add that to the success quotient.If success is also measured by sustained interest and buzz, then the tournament fell short. As the best-of-three finals opened between dominating Team Canada and upstart Team Europe, it appeared as though fans were weary as opposed to energized. The bottom line is you dont get to pick who succeeds at these tournaments (even though organizers did their best to pave a way deep into the tournament for Team USA). So the final matchup between Team Europe and Canada has seen the air slowly go out of the event at its pinnacle -- even though Team Europe provided a stern test for Canada in Game 1 of the best-of-three finals. Does that mean the tournament is a failure? Hardly. Its just less of a success than it otherwise might have been.--Scott BurnsideCanada needs competitionWhat qualifies this World Cup as a success or not? The NHL and NHLPA, I think, will make money. So theres that. Staging an entire tournament in one city over two weeks takes a whole lot of manpower, and for that I tip my hat the folks at the NHL Players Association and the NHL who worked tirelessly over the past 18 months to bring this thing together. A lot of them havent had a day off in months.The empty (although were told they were sold) seats for Game 1 of the World Cup finals, not to mention the tepid atmosphere, left a sour taste for me. A clip of Mario Lemieuxs winning goal from the 1987 Canada Cup played on the big screen during the game Tuesday night and you couldnt help but be struck by the juxtaposition of it all, the scenes of those delirious fans going out of their minds at Copps Coliseum almost 30 years ago compared with the lifeless crowd on hand at Air Canada Centre.Im not blaming the fans -- there simply is no rivalry or history between juggernaut Team Canada and the made-up Team Europe. Maybe thats just it. This tournament will be great again once we get a team to rival Canada, which I suspect will be Team USA next time around given the rising young American star talent. The NHL and NHLPA did a nice job of bringing this event back. A rousing success it was not. Ill give it a solid B-plus. -- Pierre LeBrunThe players clearly caredI look at this tournament and I see unrealized potential. I cant help but wonder what a USA-Canada final might have looked like. I also cant help but wonder if Team North America could have beaten Canada.dddddddddddd Maybe not in a series, but man, would I have liked their chances in a one-game, semifinal-knockout opportunity. We would have seen fewer empty seats if one of those scenarios had materialized. What this tournament showed us is that there is real potential for a great World Cup for the ages, even if we didnt get that here. The players clearly cared. You saw it in the effort turned in by Sidney Crosby and his teammates. You saw it when the veterans on Team Europe buckled down and got serious at just the right time. You saw it in the red eyes of the Americans when they were eliminated. Ill leave this tournament thinking about what might have been and what might still yet to be at the next one. --Craig CustanceNorth America-Sweden was worth every pennyIve loved the World Cup. I think, from a hockey standpoint, that it was worth holding the entire tournament just to see that 3-on-3 overtime between Team North America and Sweden. Holy crap, that was amazing. Id be lying, however, if I said the air has felt so electric all the way through. I think thats a function of the artificiality of the event -- unlike those other non-invented sporting events found in nature -- and the fact that the World Cup isnt yet entrenched in the collective hockey mind.Time will improve its stature. I just hoped for more from Toronto. The surprise success of Team Europe changed the dynamic of the finals (and blame the Americans, not Europe, for being absolutely terrible and blowing the chance for a more compelling matchup), but Canada remains one of the great hockey teams ever assembled, even a perfect one. For that team to play in front of empty seats in a hockey capital is inexcusable to me. -- Chris JonesIt was great for the game -- at every levelI will watch hockey anywhere, anytime and at any level. It could be a youth, high school, college, junior, minor league or NHL game and I will pay attention. I love the game. For an entire month -- which included trips to Gothenburg, Sweden; Helsinki, Finland; Washington, D.C.; and Toronto -- Ive been spoiled by the best talent in the world during this tournament.The World Cup of Hockey is a good thing. Sure, it has some wrinkles, but this event needs to have a future no matter whether NHLers participate in the Olympics or not. I picked Sweden to win the World Cup championship and that obviously did not come to fruition. Being an American, I was hoping for a better outcome by Team USA. Team North America was like watching a bunch of kids play on the pond. It was exciting and actually brought me out of my seat once or twice. You have to love how Team Europe literally surprised the world and reached the finals against Team Canada. Speaking of the Canadians, this roster has to be one of the greatest collections of talent -- ever. After you take time to digest the entire process you will realize this tournament was great for the game of hockey at every level and it needs to happen again. -- Joe McDonald ' ' '