Monday Links - No Diggity, No Doubt

As the season approaches, we'll be better and more organized with how we do links. We'll also be doing them more often because, well, hockey and whatnot.

But it's the offseason and--for the MOST part--no one's doing jack shit. So, y'know, whatever.

BLUES NEWS:

• Say Hi to Ashley, aka RealBadRobot. [SLGT]
• Chris Porter, Blues fan favorite, agreed to a one-year two-way deal with the Flyers on Saturday. He reunites with Dave Hakstol, his coach at the U of North Dakota, if he makes the big roster. The noise you hear is BluesMay, sobbing softly at the news. [SLGT FanShots]
• Former Blues second-round pick Philip McRae--son of former Blues fan favorite Basil McRae--also will leave the Blues organization, signing a deal with the ECHL's Bakersfield Condors. [SLGT]
• What will become of David Backes, Blues Captain? We hear from rminton618. [SLGT]
• Yes, we should get the 2018 World Junior Championships to St. Louis. [SLGT FanShots]
• Is there too much of a good thing when it comes to the Blues and stability? Hildy goes into it. [SLGT]
• Hildy also dives into a question about whether or not Curtis Joseph and Keith Tkachuk are worthy of the Hockey Hall of Fame. [SLGT]
• Part three of Robb's April Blues series looks into what the bloody fuck happened to all those shots in the postseason. [SLGT]

HOCKEY NEWS:

• The biggest news to come down since we last did links is obviously the Patrick Kane investigation on sexual assault charges in suburban Buffalo. [SLGT]
• Ryan Lambert tries to make sense of the nonsense summer of 2015 by Jim Benning and the Canucks in Trending Topics. [Puck Daddy]
• The Ducks paid Jakob Silfverberg, giving the young forward a four-year $15MM extension. [Orange County Register]
• And it seems the Ducks have won the Bobby Ryan trade . . . yes, the one Silfverberg was a part of. [CBS Sports Eye on Hockey]
• Kings general manager Dean Lombardi has had a pretty shitty summer, but at least he'll get to be the general manager for Team USA's 2016 World Cup of Hockey squad. [USA Today]
• Las Vegas and Quebec City, the only two cities to apply for expansion, were both invited to phase two of the process. [TSN]
• Everett Silvertips star Auston Matthews, widely considered the best player of the 2016 NHL Draft class, will play in Switzerland for cash instead of in the WHL as an "amateur" in Everett. Hell, I think I would. (GO THUNDERBIRDS.) [Sportsnet]
• You've probably gotten a load of this story, but the NHL has partnered with MLB Advanced Media on a six-year digital media rights deal, which could be a boon for both parties. [NHL.com]
• And now, with everything in place, it's time for the NHL to dump blackouts. Goddamn right it is. Travis Hughes of SB Nation NHL and Broad Street Hockey lays out the case. [Broad Street Hockey]

OTHER SHIT:

• The nine strangest things you'll find on Pictorial St. Louis. (S/T to CrossCheckRaise) [Missouri History Museum]
• It's nigh impossible to attempt to rank the top seven Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts of all time, but this guy tries. [Nerdist]
• 70 years after the second atomic bomb was dropped, Japan marked the event with a ceremony. [NPR / The Two-Way]
• An English League One team accidentally scored a goal on its' opponent, so they conceded an equalizer on purpose. Unreal display of sportsmanship. [Deadspin / Screamer]
• There's now a handy device for medical professionals to find your veins when they need to, and it looks wicked badass. [Mental Floss]
• Randy Johnson recently was enshrined into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and to celebrate the event, the Diamondbacks served a 51-inch corn dog in honor of The Big Unit's jersey number of choice. [SB Nation / Lookit]
• A thing NOT to do when you're planning a robbery? Accidentally dial 911. [Y! / AP]

VIDEO:

"No Diggity", performed Jessica Rabbit-style. Holy shit:

VERY well done.

There will be more links Wednesday and Friday, I promise. Send me stuff for Wednesday:

• gtdonutking AT gmail DOT com
• @KingDonutI

Look for Episode #95 of Beyond Checkerdome later this morning! Episode #96 will probably not be TOO far behind, as we BARELY missed all the Patrick Kane stuff by recording Wednesday night.