New Year's Day is the moment when the NHL season hits another gear. Suddenly it's All-Star Weekend. Then it's the trade deadline. Then teams start getting eliminated from playoff contention, while others start clinching postseason spots.
Along the way, the NHL's awards races will come into sharper focus, too. Already we're starting to see the voters flock to some favorites at the top of their ballots.
Welcome to the NHL Awards Watch for January, where the actual voters for some of these awards share their current thinking. We've polled a wide selection of Professional Hockey Writers Association voters anonymously to get a sense of where the wind is blowing for the current leaders.