Quick hits: Jimmy's smokin'; Cal-to-Pouliot heart transplant; ASG Breakaway competition goalie

I'm feeling a little cranky this afternoon, but then this bit of magical loveliness floated into my Google Reader and put a smile on my face.

Here's James Shepperd and his perfect face talking about his all star break plans. Am I the only one who is always a little surprised by how deep his voice is? Rawr.

--------------

Mike Toth of Sportsnet.ca looks back at his pre-season predictions to see how they're coming along at mid-season.

Prediction:
3. The perfect hockey transplant? Removing the heart of Cal Clutterbuck and placing it inside the body of Benoit Pouliot. The Minnesota Wild selected the gifted Pouliot fourth overall in the 2005 NHL draft. But since then, he's only played a handful of games at the NHL level and has spent much of his AHL apprenticeship skating around in a fog. Clutterbuck, on the other hand, is the epitome of making the most out of limited ability and the former Oshawa General has a chance of cracking the Minnesota roster as a fourth line energy player. Wild officials say that because Pouliot is so talented, he's never had to sweat like the Clutterbuck's of the world. However, if the light bulb finally goes on, it would play a major role in solving Minnesota's search for a sniper to complement Marian Gaborik.

Reflection:
Top shelf: While we're on that subject, let's turn our attention to a pair of prospects with the Minnesota Wild. "Too bad you couldn't place the heart of Cal Clutterbuck inside the body of Benoit Pouliot", we wrote. Lo and behold, Pouliot is in danger of being a first round flop, as he was recently returned to the minors. Clutterbuck, on the other hand, is making a real name for himself. (Which isn't that difficult when you've got a perfect hockey handle like "Clutterbuck".) Living up to our claims that he'd crack the roster, Clutterbuck has displayed a knack for chipping in with some big goals and is fast becoming one of the NHL's most annoying super-pests. Heck! He's even had Wayne Gretzky screaming at him a couple of times from the Coyotes bench, as The Great One wished he could deploy Dave Semenko to teach Clutterbuck a lesson.

Yep. Mr. Toth has been paying attention.

----------------

Finally, this post from Puck Daddy today vis-a-vis the goalie who will be taking the shots during the Breakaway competition at the All Star Game:

Gone are the all-star goalies with pride on the line; according the League, the current plan is for the goalie in the competition to be a "junior level guy from the Montreal-area" that (as of this morning) has not been selected. Maybe League officials will drive up to a rink in an unmarked van, put a bag over some random goalie's head, and he wakes up between the pipes in Montreal ...

Wysh nails the mental visuals again. Funny stuff. And he's got some good suggestions for alternatives. It's worth a read.