Playoffs! I'm talking about Playoffs!

Tis the season to be jolly, fa la la la la, la la la la.

(Sorry, Christmas, but it's playoff time and that's the gift that keeps on giving.)

So, tonight, the Aeros play game 1 in Peoria. I'll be paying my $8 to watch on AHLLive.com and live and die with every shift.

But I'll also be keeping an eye on the NHL playoffs. I don't have a dog in the fight, which will make it actually a little more fun because I know there won't be tears at the end, but I certainly have some favorites.

Here are the match-ups I'll have an eye on through the first round, in order of interest:

The series I'm most excited about is Caps v. Rags. It's the Ovechkins vs. The Averys. It's Son vs. Father. I love/hate the Rangers when they have Avery (I really didn't give a rats ass about them when he was gone). So, if the Caps destroy the Rangers, then the hate part of me is pretty happy to see them get what's coming to them.

And if the Rangers somehow manage to contain #8 & Co., then the love side will be happy. I predict the Caps win handily, but Beautiful Theo finally loses his hair dealing with Avery.

I probably should be more excited about Bruins/Habs, but I love my Western Conference and I'm looking forward to seeing how injury-riddled Calgary deals with adversity against the Hawks, who seem to have just redonkulous good will and positive momentum behind them this season. Plus, I heart Kris Versteeg and his adorableness. Kipper screwed me like a $5 hooker in fantasy hockey this season, so even though I have a certain Calgary fondness, I'll shed no tears if he's on the golf course by the end of next week.

And now for the Bruins/Habs. No brainer for the Bruins here. I hate the Habs and their obnoxious fans. I'll adopt Milan Lucic as my temporary, post-season Clutterbuck. If the Red Wings make it to the finals, I hope the Caps are there with them, but if anybody else makes it from the West, I hope the Bruins are the Eastern team. And I'm not usually a fan of anything Boston -- those whining Red Sox fans and the Patriots (augh, will they just get sucky again already?) I just wanna run 'em all over with the cah. But I make an exception for the Bruins.

Obviously, the Ducks need to get completely and embarrassingly swept by the Sharks. Anything else will be terribly disappointing. Suck it, Pronger.

Okay, confession time: I don't give a rat's ass about Columbus. Seems like people are universally so happy to see this team finally in the playoffs, so I kinda feel guilty that I have absolutely no interest in getting on the Good Will Bandwagon. I mean, they're in Ohio. OHIO. Who gives a shit? Go Red Wings.

My apologies to Kevin, but I'm taking the Flyers against the Pens. I like my hockey mean and gritty, so I guess it shouldn't surprise anyone. Plus, that orange looks awesome on goalie gear. And the Pens have just never captured my imagination. I mean, yeah, they've got a ton of talent and Malkin's funny with his broken English and Sid's pretty with is pillow lips, but ... meh.

Naturally, in the Nucks/Blues matchup, I wish the Nucks nothing but heartache. From Luuuuuuuuu to the brain-eating Sedins (Is it worse to question their humanity or their sexuality? Let's just continue to do both and cover all the bases.) I'm rooting for the Failboat to just crash right into the arena and take 'em all out. Then again, I'm not real fond of the Blues other than their goalie, Chris Mason, and their giant backup goalie, Ben Bishop. Carlo Colaiacovo can take a flying leap.

Finally, I actually think Devils v. Carolina could be a really good match-up. Cam Ward is hot, Brody is The Man. But there's no rivalry fire here, so, meh. I'm definitely rooting for the Devils, but probably won't see much, if any, of this series unless they go to some ridiculous overtime.

I dunno about you, but I'm ready to drop the puck, bitches. Month and a half of late-night hockey hangovers, here we come! *yawn* Right after this nap...