With the National Hockey League’s 2015-16 campaign officially concluded comes the presentation of winners in categories at its annual awards ceremony Wednesday in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Within the mix comes additional intrigue for St. Louis hockey fans, and more specifically for puck heads that are gamers, as Electronic Arts’ sports division reveals the cover of its upcoming “NHL17” video game release that night.
Blues’ winger Vladimir Tarasenko reached the final round for the game’s front sleeve alongside San Jose center Joe Pavelski and the mad dash to gaming immortality was fierce in online voting that concluded while both players’ respective teams were battling against each other in May’s Western Conference Final.
“We had over six million votes this year and, in this day and age of social media, it was the perfect platform for fans to get involved and vote for their favorite player,” said EA Sports’ Sean Ramjagsingh, who spearheads the company’s NHL brand. “It was the first time for us that two players had played against each other (this deep) and it was great to see these two play each other both on-the-ice and off-the-ice.”
According to Ramjagsingh, a representative from the top international squads that competed at the 2015 World Cup was placed in NHL17’s cover quarterfinal bracket. Tarasenko, who represented Russia, bested Tampa Bay’s Victor Hedman (Team Sweden) in the opening round and topped Dallas’ Jamie Benn (Team Canada) in the semifinals.
Meanwhile Pavelski, who represented Team USA, edged Los Angeles’ Anze Kopitar (Team Europe) in the opening round and outlasted Edmonton’s Connor McDavid to reach the finals.
Photo Credit: Vladimir Tarasenko Twitter
Both finalists weren’t shy in garnering online support down the stretch. On his Twitter feed, Tarasenko offered complimentary playoff tickets and incorporated a push from St. Louis Cardinals’ catcher Yadier Molina for an edge while Pavelski gave away autographed merchandise and even posted a picture of his mom to spike the online ballot box.
Clever artwork submitted by fans also propelled each player’s missive.
“Some of the custom covers were just unbelievable,” said Ramjagsingh. “My favorite one was Tarasenko riding the bear with the Russian flag in the background. Pavelski riding the shark was another good one. For me, it was just great seeing some of the personalities online.”
EA Sports’ NHL brand, launched in 1991, features a live action shot by the kingpin on the cover and there’s a lot at stake personally for those that reach the final cut.
Photo Credit: nhl.com
“The NHL has been around for so long that guys that are (now) up for the cover vote grew up playing our game,” said Ramjagsingh. “It’s a huge honor for them to get the opportunity to be on the cover, which is why you see them get so aggressive on the social media campaigns.”
The producer also annually receives a lot of immediate feedback from skaters on game play with each cycle’s release.
“It’s a huge thrill for players to see themselves on the game,” he said. “For the ones that play, they want to be a little bit stronger, a little bit faster, have a better slap shot, wrist shot and stability on the ice. They all want to up their ratings a bit.”
If Tarasenko hits the pay window in Las Vegas, it will mark the second time a ‘Note has donned the game’s front cover as Hall of Fame defenseman Chris Pronger was featured on the primary sleeve in EA Sports’ 2000 release.
“It’s a huge honor for them,” said Ramjagsingh of the eventual cover winner. “Just like the NHL awards that are given out at the event, the unveiling of the cover is just another massive deal for them.”
NHL17 will be available to selective PlayStation and Xbox formats in September.
