The Witching Hour is Upon Us

NHL playoffs start in two days... I love this time of year. Without further adieu, here's the first round matchups:

Western Conference

(1) San Jose Sharks vs (8) Anaheim Ducks

To quote from an e-mail I recently sent... "as a Sharks fan I was cursing J.S. Giguere when he allowed that shootout goal Saturday night... taking the Ducks down from a 6 to possible 8 (which of course came to pass) seed. I do fall back, though, on something I was told be a fellow Sharks fan... 'the goal isn't to win one round... the goal is to win the Cup, and to do that you have to beat everyone'. That said, I would have preferred either Anaheim or Detroit to knock the other out in a 2-7 matchup. The way the universe does things, though, San Jose would probably have lost to St Louis as the 8 seed."

So, it should be a highly entertaining series to watch and I'm viewing it as an enormous litmus test to see just how good this Sharks team is. Whereas last season's first round win over Calgary in 7 games was cause for concern (justifiably so it turned out), me thinks a win over Anaheim in 7 would be just fine.

(2) Detroit Red Wings vs (7) Columbus Blue Jackets

An interesting series. I will be very curious to watch to see just how good this Steve Mason fellow does against the Wings.

(3) Vancouver Canucks vs (6) St. Louis Blues

Roberto Luongo vs Chris Mason... I wonder if anyone will score.

(4) Chicago Blackhawks vs (5) Calgary Flames

Not sure what to expect. Me thinks Calgary will be the better team, though.

Eastern Conference

(1) Boston Bruins vs (8) Montreal Canadiens

I think the Bruins will roll. Actually, I think first they'll beat up Montreal, then roll.

(2) Washington Capitals vs (7) New York Rangers

Intriguing, but I think Washington will be too good for the Rangers.

(3) New Jersey Devils vs (6) Carolina Hurricanes

I know there are people really interested in this series, I'm just not one of them.

(4) Pittsburgh vs (5) Philadelphia

Should be great hockey, can't wait to watch.