Wednesday Links - Kylo Undercover

BLUES NEWS:

• Hildy takes a look at what the opportunity costs is of re-signing Blues Captain David Backes, and whether or not doing so would be worth the cost. [SLGT]
• Hildy also wants to know what you'd like her to ask Vladimir Tarasenko while he's in Nashville for the NHL All-Star Game. [SLGT]
• So. The T.J. Oshie for Troy Brouwer deal from the offseason. How's that working out? Well, the Capitals like it, as Robb points out. What do you think? [SLGT FanShots]
• #FuckCancer [SLGT]
• Err'body done scattered. [In the Slot / Lou Korac]
• Except for the coaches, who are trying to learn shit about scoring goals. A common theme among Ken Hitchcock-coached teams. Weird, that. [StL Today]

SCORES AND SCHEDULE:

• Nine contests last night. All went final. [NHL.com 01/26/2016]
• The last four contests before the break are all tonight. [NHL.com 01/27/2016]

HOCKEY NEWS:

• Praise of Boston College head hockey coach Jerry York, mostly, in this week's NCAA Hockey 101 from Ryan Lambert. [Puck Daddy]
• Ducks forward Shawn Horcoff peed some funny shit into a cup, so he will have to sit for 20 games. [TSN]
• Well. Semyon Varlamov is sure . . . ummmm, something. [The Sporting News]
• Oh, and because Varly was absent from practice for his civil trial AND Calvin Pickard was ill . . . Avalanche(s) coach Patrick Roy had to suit up for practice. [Denver Post]
• The Panthers signed Aleksander Barkov to a massive extension recently. Probably a good idea, he's a good hockey player and whatnot. [ESPN]
• And . . . the Cats are selling Kevin Spacey In Space shirts. Because hell, why not? They've been good luck. [CBS Sports Eye on Hockey]
• A game in Germany's top women's league from Saturday had a 27-round shootout. YES, 54 SHOTS. It is the longest shootout in recorded hockey history, eclipsing a 21-round shootout (42 shots) in Germany's top men's league in 2010. [IIHF]
• The new NHL digital platform arranged by MLB Advanced Media is online. [USA Today]
• Canadiens forward Dale Weise flipped a puck over the boards to a little kid . . . and boy, was the kid excited. Frickin' adorable. [SB Nation / #Lookit]
• I just do not link to Elliotte Friedman's 30 Thoughts column quite enough. Always a good read. [Sportsnet]

OTHER SHIT:

• RIP, Tessio. Abe Vigoda has passed. He was 94. Then again, he ALWAYS looked old, even in The Godfather . . . which was FORTY-FOUR FUCKING YEARS AGO. [NPR / The Two-Way]
• The blaster Mark Hamill used while portraying Luke Skywalker in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back is up for bid. Just $200K and it's all yours! (Until someone outbids you, anyway.) [Nerdist]
• There's a difference between Minneapolis and St. Paul, and if you fuck that up, the people of Minneapolis and St. Paul will be OUT. FOR. FUCKING. BLOOD. DUDE. [Y! / AP]
• Ranking Monopoly tokens and other bizarre shit from the ever-entertaining Drew Magary, my favorite Cardinals hater of all time. [Deadspin / Adequate Man]
• My orange caballos of Colorado (the Denver Broncos) are choosing to wear white for Super Bowl L (FUCK YOU, NFL, IT IS NOT 50, IT IS L) because they have been abhorrent in past Super Bowls when wearing orange. The Carolina Panthers, who could've chosen their blue jerseys, have chosen to wear black. They are 0-2 when wearing black in past playoff games. So, y'know, THAT'S confidence and shit. (No, seriously, I expect the Broncos to get fucking dump-trucked in this game, so if they DON'T . . . everything's gravy.) [SB Nation / #Lookit]
• Eleven "Words of the Year" from around the globe, in their native languages. [Mental Floss]

BEER OF THE DAY:

• One of the things I miss about living in Missoula, MT is . . . all the breweries! I really miss Draught Works, one of the smaller brew pubs in town. Scepter Head is a really tasty IPA from them. [Untappd]

VIDEO:

I enjoyed the hell out of Adam Driver's appearance on Saturday Night Live recently. His Undercover Boss skit at Starkiller Base was particularly choice:

Don't fuck with Kylo Ren.

BluesMay is back with you tomorrow.

And look for Episode #116 of Beyond Checkerdome in the next few days.