GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Phoenix Coyotes spent the past four years searching for impact players, but didnt have the money to land many due to the restraints of being run by the NHL. Now that an owner is all but in place, the Coyotes were able to make the kind of big-splash signing that should give them a big boost on and off the ice. Landing one of the most coveted offensive players at the start of the free agency period, the Coyotes signed forward Mike Ribeiro to a four-year, $22 million contract on Friday. "Since I came here six years ago, weve been searching for a playmaking centre iceman, someone who could make his wingers better," Coyotes general manager Don Maloney said. "Certainly, Mikes skill set, his ability to pass the puck, vision on the ice was an area we had ideally been looking for, so to be able to bring him to the desert is a really good day for us." The Coyotes took a big step toward stability this week when the Glendale City Council approved an arena lease agreement with prospective owner Renaissance Sports and Entertainment. Headed by George Gosbee, Anthony LeBlanc and Daryl Jones, RSE still needs to complete the lease agreement with Glendale and its purchase of the Coyotes (by Aug. 5), but has already loosened the purse strings for the front office. In addition to Ribeiro, the Coyotes signed free agent goalie Thomas Greiss to serve as a backup to Mike Smith and re-signed unrestricted free agent forward Kyle Chipchura to a multi-year deal. They also signed multi-year deals with forward Lauri Korpikoski and defencemen Michael Stone, both restricted free agents, and signed defenceman Chris Summers to a one-year deal. On top of that, Phoenix was working on locking up a few more players within in the organization and still has the flexibility to sign or trade for others. It added up to a new free agency experience for Maloney and assistant GM Brad Treliving. "What was interesting was that there wasnt a pending free agent in the marketplace that didnt call us and want to talk about coming to Arizona to play hockey," Maloney said. "Thats the one thing I was really encouraged by. Normally, Brad and I are banging at the phones, will you please call us ... and that gets a little old after a while, so this was such a totally different experience for Brad and I." Their big move was landing the kind of front-line centre they had been seeking almost since moving to the desert in 1996. The 33-year-old Ribeiro has been a consistent scorer during his 14-year career, topping 50 points in a season eight times. He had 49 points, including 36 assists, in 48 games with Washington last season. Ribeiro played three seasons under Coyotes coach Dave Tippett in Dallas and spent six seasons with Montreal after the Canadiens picked him in the second round of the 1998 NHL draft. He could play on the first line with captain Shane Doan and Mikkel Boedker or could allow Tippett to mix things up with his top lines. "Obviously, his relationship with Dave Tippett was a huge factor in this decision," Maloney said. "They developed a very strong relationship when they were together in Dallas and weve monitored his status and feel like he has lots of life left in him." Landing Ribeiro was the biggest move, but locking up some of the teams own players also was key, particularly since the team had struggled to do that in the past with the NHL running things. The 27-year-old Chipchura gave the Coyotes toughness and skill on the fourth line, with five goals and nine assists last season. Korpikoski, 26, has developed into a solid playmaker on the left wing, scoring 40 and 37 points the previous two seasons before dropping to 11 during the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season while battling injuries. The 23-year-old Stone spent most of the 2011-12 season in the AHL, but developed into one of Phoenixs best defencemen the last half of the 2012-13 season, finishing with five goals and four assists. The Coyotes also are hoping to re-sign Boedker, a restricted free agent. The Coyotes werent able to retain forward Boyd Gordon, one of their top off-season priorities, when he signed a three-year deal with Edmonton. Backup goalie Jason LaBarbera also signed with the Oilers. "Boyd was a great player for us and Im happy for him to get his contract," Maloney said. "Thats the business and they (the Oilers) certainly value him and had enough in their payroll budget that they could spend what they wanted to spend. We liked Boyd with us, we would have liked to keep him, it just got to a point where we decided were going to have to go another direction." Losing Gordon was tough, but unlike previous seasons when key players left, the Coyotes have the support from an owner to get someone else to take his place. Air Max 270 Wholesale China . The giant slalom world champion slipped during her first run in the morning, landing on her back and then twisting forward before getting her leg caught in the protective material on the side of the slope. Air Max 270 Sale Online . For the Wild it was their first win of the season and they now have a record of 1-1-2 while the Jets fall to 2-2. Jets start a six game home stand Friday with another divisional game, home to the Dallas Stars. http://www.airmax270cheapsale.com/ . "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in the AL wild-card race. Air Max 270 Cheap Sale . Bryant, who signed a five-year, $34 million contract as a free agent with Cleveland in March, reported symptoms on Monday morning, a team spokesman said. Air Max 270 Clearance . Here are his mid-season NBA awards. MVP: (KEVIN DURANT-Thunder) - Has been sensational this season and more importantly, the most consistent player in the league. Considering that his team has been without star guard Russell Westbrook and with the free agent departure of sharpshooter Kevin Martin, hes had to carry the majority of the load to not only keep his team afloat but more importantly, at an elite level. CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Its always tough for North Carolina to stop Georgia Techs intricate triple-option offense.If the 18th-ranked Tar Heels cant find a way to do it Saturday, they can pretty much forget about another trip to the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game.North Carolina (6-2, 4-1, No. 21 CFP) plays host to the Yellow Jackets (5-3, 2-3) knowing they have very little margin for error in their pursuit of a second straight ACC title game berth.The Tar Heels share the lead in the Coastal Division with No. 23 Virginia Tech, and the Hokies hold the tiebreaker by virtue of their 34-3 victory last month. That means North Carolina probably needs a perfect November -- and definitely needs Virginia Tech to lose at least once -- to claim a spot in the relocated game in Orlando, Florida.Youre right on that edge, so all the focus has to be on our preparation each and every week and worrying about ourselves, UNC coach Larry Fedora said.And worrying about Paul Johnsons option offense.The Yellow Jackets rank second in the ACC in rushing, averaging 247.6 yards, and are only 11th in total offense at 386 yards per game. But they got things clicking last week against Duke , rolling up 605 yards -- their most since 2014 -- with Justin Thomas accounting for four touchdowns in a 38-35 victory.I think thats one thing that allows us to get better historically through the year is, we do the same thing over and over, Johnson said. The execution is better. Youre not going to trick anybody. Thats a big misnomer.They always seem to post big numbers against the Tar Heels -- who have the ACCs worst run defense this season.In four meetings since Fedora took over before the 2012 season, Georgia Tecch has averaged 333} yards rushing with 16 touchdowns on the ground -- including seven in that wild 68-50 victory over UNC in 2012.dddddddddddd---Some other things to know about the Georgia Tech-North Carolina game:PREP TIME DISADVANTAGE? UNC had last week off, and that seemingly would give the Tar Heels the advantage of extra prep time for the Tech offense. But in both 2012 and 13, North Carolina was off before facing Georgia Tech and the Yellow Jackets won both games. UNCs wins in the past two years have come without the so-called benefit of a bye.BOWL WATCH: Georgia Tech has won two straight to move one victory shy of a return to bowl eligibility. The Yellow Jackets 18-year postseason streak ended last year after they went 3-9.HOME SWEET HOME: North Carolina wont leave the state in November. This is just the second home game since late September for the Tar Heels, whose only other game at Kenan Stadium was that loss to Virginia Tech. After next weeks short trip to Duke, they finish up at home against N.C. State and The Citadel.KEY MOMENT: Fedora says he knew last years Tar Heels team was special when it rallied from 21 points down in the first quarter to beat Georgia Tech 38-31 in Atlanta behind three touchdown runs from Marquise Williams. He says it pretty much propelled us for the rest of the season.---AP Sports Writer Charles Odum in Atlanta contributed to this report.---Follow Joedy McCreary at http://twitter.com/joedyap. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/joedy-mccreary---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '