Well, it's April, and like the NHL and hometown heroes of the Colorado Avalanche, the CHSIHL begins it's Playoffs this month. And although these CHSIHL Playoffs won't take nearly as long as the Stanley Cup Playoffs, they promise to be as exciting, and equally as heartbreaking or exhilarating depending upon what High School you're rooting for. The early stages of the competition kick-off on Friday evening, April 18th at the Bladium in Denver. Play will continue at the Bladium through Saturday evening. Then on Sunday afternoon and evening, all final rounds will take place at Parker Fieldhouse, with the Class 5A final wrapping up the Championship weekend at 8:00pm on Sunday evening.

The Class 5A field has been whittled down to it's remaining eight teams. Following a wild final two weeks that saw teams change potential playoff positions sometimes overnight, the seeding has been finalized. Below are some unofficial thumbnail sketches of the initial set of match-ups that may provide fans and players some food for thought as anticipation of the games increase, especially for the outstanding players who'll participate in this Playoff competition and make it an exciting and entertaining spectacle for hockey fans of all ages to go out and watch and enjoy!

These teams met once during the regular season and played one of the most hotly contested, emotion packed games of the year. Although the Rangers eventually prevailed 9-7, the Chargers have just enough fire power and an underrated goalie in Jesse Schluetter to force LP to bring their A game to be successful. A quick look at the season stats column above indicates clearly that the Rangers can really bring it to the net and Schluetter will be called upon to frustrate the Rangers to keep them in the game for as long as possible.

Key match-ups

The imposing Lewis Palmer power play will test Chatfied goalie Jesse Schluetter, with the league's top defenseman in All Star Mike Fisk feeding snipers Keith Yates and Nick Galvin. If Schluetter can hold them off for a good portion of the game, the Chargers, who have been known to take the odd penalty, could make it an interesting game for what will likely be a packed house at the Bladium late Friday evening

Chatfield's Joey Waring has had a great season and if he can continue it in Friday night's game the Chargers have a good chance to defy the odds and overcome the firepower of the Rangers.

This game has the potential to be a monster as it will be the third meeting of the year for these teams. Douglas County has won both, coming from behind on March 30th to help propel themselves to the 2nd overall seed. As can be seen by looking at the final season stats above, both teams are stingy when it comes to giving up goals. Each team has seasoned goalies, with Front Range's Devon Sherwood leading all Class 5A goalies statistically and the Huskies' Jonathan Fritts having last season's dramatic overtime Championship winning experience to draw from. As if to add a little spice to an already great match-up, the end of the March 30th game generated some emotional outbursts between players and fans and the table looks to be set for what should be an intense, tight, low scoring defensive battle.

Key match-ups

Front Range All Star goalie Devon Sherwood will be a genuine challenge for the Huskies to put many pucks by as was proven in the most recent contest between the two teams. Sherwood led all goalies in Class 5A statistical categories during the season and will be right at home in the friendly confines of the Bladium.

In order for Sherwood to have a chance, the Front Range D has to neutralize Douglas County's scoring triumvirate of Brad Conover, Skylar McKnight and Alex Vlahinos to some degree. If any two of these players has consistently open lanes, even Sherwood's usual stellar play may not hold up long enough.

These two teams met once in the regular season with Smoky Hill prevailing in a closely contested 6-4 decision. However, that was all the way back in January in game 2 of the season. Since then, the Golden Eagles have improved dramatically. MV forward Kyle Brooks has established himself as one of the top all around players in 5A, and a host of other skilled Mountain Vista players like goalie David Hutt and forward Tommy Derian make up a very formidable opposition for the Buffs to match up against. A look at the season stats above indicates the Buffs possess a dangerous offense led by league MVP Rees Bernot with seniors like Jesse Phillips and Trevor Smith ready to bring even more offensive pressure.

Key match-ups

Kyle Brooks muscled his way into the league's top five scorers and is a bonified threat to score or set up a teammate whenever he has the puck. The Buffs need to keep him under wraps as best as they can for as long as possible.

Smoky Hill has alternated two young goalies all season and whether it's soph Dylan Secrest or freshman Kevin Dwyer, this will be their first HS playoff action and how big or small a lesson they learn may tell the tale in this intriguing game.

These teams met once in the season and Rocky Mountain came out on top of a 7-5 see-saw battle. The Hawks have elevated their game over the last several weeks of the season to grab a fourth seed. Wes Schaeffer turned in a great season and Adam Steinberg polished up his game in preparation for the playoffs with outstanding efforts over the last three games, including a hat trick to help beat Front Range in one of the great CHSIHL contests of the year. Rocky Mountain on the other hand, lost a great opportunity to garner the 2nd overall seed when they fell to Highlands Ranch on Easter Sunday morning. Coach Mark Jenkins knows his team can tend to have a Jekkyl/Hyde personality and will likely have them in a straight Dr. Jekyll mode by Saturday afternoon. With the Getsky brothers and All Stars Dillon Ford and Mike Dorsher, Rocky Mountain has shone flashes of offensive might at various times during the season.

Key match-ups - Horizon forward Wes Schaeffer finished second in the league in scoring and was the obvious catalyst for the late season winning streak the Hawks put together to claw their way up to the fourth seed. Line mate Kaylin Tisdell was a great complement to Schaeffer and Rocky Mountain will have to keep a close check on them to maintain some level of control of the game.

Rocky Mountain goalie Robert Parkison is one of the underrated netminders in Class 5A. He flashed a brilliant glove at times during the season and if he get's a hot hand the Hawks could be in for a long game.