First, here's my ballot from the week.

1. Nathan Davis
2. T.J. Hensick
3. Trevor Smith
4. Eric Ehn
5. Joe Fallon

Hensick is really going to be the guy to watch down the stretch, but the crazy thing is that whether Hensick wins the Hobey might have more to do with goalie Billy Sauer than T.J. Hensick. People will point to Hensick's hat trick against Alaska this past weekend as a big factor in his rapid rise. However, the other important factor is the fact that Michigan is 4-1-0 in 2007, having allowed eight goals in five games. Hensick has been putting up great numbers all season, especially in the assist category, but I think Michigan's recent success has helped his Hobey candidacy tremendously. If Michigan makes a real second-half surge, and Hensick continues to play as well as he has played to this point, I think he overtakes Nathan Davis. However, Michigan's defense and goaltending will drive the Wolverines' success or failure, which means that a lot of this is out of Hensick's hands.

The other interesting move this week is Joe Fallon's jump up to fifth place. Fallon has shown himself to be a top-flight netminder in spurts over the last two years, but he's never had wins on the level of this weekend's sweep of Boston College. Fallon is another guy who's Hobey chances ride largely on his team's performance. After all, great goaltenders don't get much Hobey love when their teams aren't winning. Just ask Brian Elliott.

The tough thing about the Hobey Watch every week is that everyone is picking five candidates to get the ten that will eventually be named finalists. The problem with that is that there are guys who would be on a lot of top ten lists, but don't crack the top five, so they don't get the recognition they should in the Hobey Watch.

So, who are these guys? Among this year's field, Travis Morin of Minnesota State comes to mind immediately. Bobby Goepfert of St. Cloud is another one, and I can't help but think Mike Santorelli of Northern Michigan is going to make a run at a finalist berth before the end of the season. In the East, David Jones of Dartmouth is leading the ECACHL in scoring, and could certainly get a look, although Nick Dodge is looking like the ECACHL's best Hobey candidate (personally, I feel there are better forwards than both of them). Hockey East has been represented pretty well thus far, with Trevor Smith, Michel Léveillé and Joe Fallon all getting some respectable attention, but beyond them, John Curry could merit a look. He hasn't had much buzz to this point, but if the Terriers make their usual strong showing on the grand stage of the Beanpot, look for Curry to start making a run.

But it all depends on what happens on the ice, so let's get to it.