Cherry Picked

In Bruins news:

• Czechmate Jakub Zboril is progressing just fine, thank you. Causeway Crowd
• In Fluto Shinzawa’s Sunday long read... New Bruin David Backes’ exit was part of a hard but necessary upgrade for the Blues. Jeff Gorton was able to sweat out the re-signing of Chris Kreider and Jimmy Hayes’ brother Kevin. Noel Acciari’s former teammate Tim Schaller’ single-minded determination to ink a deal with the Bruins. Bonus- a look at a few top American born players and how they fared in the NHL draft. The Boston Globe
• The Bruins forwards and goaltenders are featured in this briefing of the state of the Bruins. Several players’ positions depend upon where Backes plays. Causeway Crowd
• Anders Bjork and his family have deep ties to Notre Dame, and the Fighting Irish’s leading scorer returns to school with the goal of pushing his offensive game even farther. NHL Bruins

Elsewhere around the rink:

• Speculation is that the Bruins are saving cap space for one very special target, and that the Leafs will place Nathan Horton on LTIR to free space, perhaps with the same player in mind. Spector’s Hockey
• Statistical analysis reveals that David Pastrnak may be legendary, but he is also among the NHL’s most lucky scorers, even luckier than one notable former Bruin. Puck Daddy
• Enjoy an interlude of tidbits from Sean McIndoe, including a parody of Madonna’s "Vogue" featuring then-Bruin Andy Moog along with the funny tale behind NHLer Tom "Bussey" Martin’s nickname. (With video) Vice Sports
• Rest and recovery are key components of a training regimen. What do players do when the season lasts deep into June? The Hockey News
• The IIHF has requested the names of 14 players from the Sochi Olympics whose doping test samples were compromised by Russian tampering. The Hockey News
• Seen at the scene- Zac Rinaldo at the Rogers Cup... @BasialD
• An historic home owned by Johnny Boychuk in Nassau County, NY will be demolished after logistical roadblocks defeated an attempt to have it moved to a new location. Newsday
• NBCSports suffered a 14% drop in ratings last year, but they will change nothing and hope for the best. Good luck with that. Awful Announcing
• No, that would be EVANDER Kane of the Sabres- Arrest, harassment, bar, Buffalo... the names change, but the story sounds eerily familiar. Sigh. Olean Times Herald
• Beer league stylin’- check out this goalie’s custom pads in his spin on a Duck Hunt theme. Bar Down
• In a surprise move, the Philadelphia Eagles have signed HNIC’s Don Cherry! NO, REALLY! Bleeding Green Nation
• Today’s non sequitur is from Kirk Luedeke about his mentor acting as technical advisor for the movie "Gettysburg," and the key strategic call made by Major General John Buford, Jr. to deny the early-arriving Conferderate army high ground. Scouting Post