NHL 16 News Post

Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane are the NHL 16 Cover Athletes

09:01 PM - June 24, 2015 by Steve_OS

Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane were just announced as the NHL 16 cover athletes, during the 2015 NHL Awards show. For the first time in the history of the franchise, two teammates will share the cover, along with the Stanley Cup trophy.

Patrick Kane was the cover athlete for NHL 10, while Jonathan Toews was the NHL 11 cover athlete.

Read the full press release below.

EA Sports NHL 16 Reveals 2015 Stanley Cup Champions Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane as Cover Athletes

Chicago Blackhawks Captain and Right Winger Team Up to Share the Cover Spotlight for the First Time in Franchise History

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA), the National Hockey League (NHL�) and the National Hockey League Players� Association (NHLPA) announced today during the 2015 NHL Awards� that three-time Stanley Cup� Champions Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane from the Chicago Blackhawks� will both appear on the cover of EA SPORTS� NHL� 16. This marks the first time in franchise history that the cover has featured two teammates as well as the Stanley Cup trophy. Kane and Toews are also the only athletes to appear on an EA SPORTS� NHL cover twice. The duo spotlight embodies the spirit of NHL 16, where you�ll play together and win together.

�I�m honored to not only share the Stanley Cup Championship with Patrick, but to share the EA SPORTS NHL 16 cover with him too,� said Toews. �Our team�s passion and dedication have made this all possible � and I�m sure fans will be fired up about it.�

�Being teamed up with Jonathan for the NHL 16 cover is a great feeling,� said Kane. �I never would have imagined being on the cover twice, and the fact this is happening on top of our team taking home the Cup is unreal.�

�Congratulations to both players; they are a perfect fit for this honor,� said Dave McCarthy, NHL Vice President of Consumer Products Marketing. "What the Chicago Blackhawks have been able to accomplish in the last six years has been nothing short of remarkable and I�m excited that this year�s NHL 16 cover will reflect the spirit of teamwork.�

"We would like to congratulate Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane on this well-deserved honor of being chosen as the duo cover athletes,� said Adam Larry, NHLPA Director of Licensing and Associate Counsel. �Hockey fans show great passion and interest in the EA SPORTS video game franchise each year, and they will be pleased to see these two outstanding teammates grace the cover of NHL 16.�

Built with more fan feedback and insights than ever before, NHL 16 delivers your most requested features and modes along with new experiences that make NHL 16 bigger and better. With new levels of depth across single player and team modes, combined with improved gameplay balance and innovation as well as new tools to help you play at your highest level, NHL 16 lets you play together and win together.

NHL 16 hits store shelves on September 15, 2015 in North America and September 17, 2015 in Europe for Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, and PlayStation�4. EA SPORTS� NHL� Legacy Edition brings together the most popular modes and award-winning gameplay features from nine years of NHL hockey and will be available for the Xbox 360� video game and entertainment system, and the PlayStation�3 computer entertainment system.

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Member Comments

# 41 CMH @ 06/25/15 12:47 PM

I hope that picture is the cover exactly just for the resulting thread and comments that will follow.

You guys make me laugh.

# 42 Ruffy @ 06/25/15 01:09 PM

They released the guys who are going to be on the cover of the game....not the actual cover.......this "community" they were going to get Kane and Toews to pose for photos during the off-days of the Stanley Cup Finals.

The cover shouldn't matter to anyone in this "community" if they truly want a good hockey game the focus should be the game play and modes....not what marketing decided would get them more publicity and fan recognition for the casual person to buy the game.

Considering every year someone out here or in the EA forums offers up free fan made covers you can have who or what you want on them.

It's hilarious when haters hate for no reason.

# 43 brandon27 @ 06/25/15 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolbe31


	This was clearly their plan from the beginning, with no cover vote. Promoting team play, what greater team accomplishment than to win the Stanley Cup. Unfortunately for EA, planning to use the Stanley Cup champs as the cover didn't work out too great, as everyone has mentioned, Toews and Kane were on recent covers. I'd suspect EA was probably pulling for any of the other 3 teams in the final four to avoid this repetition. I don't mind the idea, kinda like it actually. What I don't like, is the picture they chose. Just looks weird. They probably could've avoided a lot of criticism if they picked different Blackhawk players as well. At the end of the day, it's just a picture. I see it once when I buy the game, and then basically never again.

I don't really understand how their cover decision "hasn't worked out too great" It's not like the cover is going to have a negative effect on sales. Honestly, if anyone cites the cover as their reason for not buying the game, if I'm EA, I'm not particularly sure I'd even care about that person, or group of persons as a customer. It's... it's just crazy.

It's going to work out just fine for them. It's not going to make anyone not buy the game. If anything, it might interest more people in the game who are hawks fans, or Chicago area residents who might not care much about hockey, but are swept up in the excitement the team provides.

I think the picture looks goofy, but really. I don't care what's on the cover of the game. I care whats IN the game.

# 44 DJ @ 06/25/15 03:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diehardfan


	Everyone planning on hanging the game box on a wall in your game room? Good Lord, it's the box the game comes in....worry more about what's in the box.

Thank you. No reason to get worked up over who is or isn't on the cover of these games. I'm only concerned with how the game plays once I put the disc into my PS4.

# 45 Chad0034 @ 06/25/15 06:46 PM

After being questionable about it at first, I like the decision.

In the end of the day, the more sales the game gets, the more money they can spend on the product, which in the end, is what really matters.

This is totally going to suck some of the younger kids who idolize Toews and Kane to the game.

# 46 gopher_guy @ 06/25/15 08:29 PM

Holy crap what an awful cover.

Besides the fact that I really dislike the Hawks, it's just... Ugly.

If you must give me Toews and Kane, at least give me an action shot of them in a game. Hell, even a picture of Kane doing his showtime celly, and Toews doing his double fist pump thing would have been better than a goofy picture of them both holding the Cup.

Not gonna lose sleep over it, but I'll roll my eyes every time I take the game out and see the cover.

# 47 kehlis @ 06/25/15 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gopher_guy


	Holy crap what an awful cover. Besides the fact that I really dislike the Hawks, it's just... Ugly. If you must give me Toews and Kane, at least give me an action shot of them in a game. Hell, even a picture of Kane doing his showtime celly, and Toews doing his double fist pump thing would have been better than a goofy picture of them both holding the Cup. Not gonna lose sleep over it, but I'll roll my eyes every time I take the game out and see the cover.

That's not the cover, just who's on the cover.

# 48 gopher_guy @ 06/25/15 09:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kehlis


	That's not the cover, just who's on the cover.

Oh, that picture isn't the actual cover image?

If so, that's good news. I've seen images of the cover floating around, but I guess people just shopped the image on there.

# 49 redslumber @ 06/26/15 12:01 AM

Who cares tbh? I look at the cover maybe once when I get the game, then never again.

As a Canucks fan, I've lived through NHL 09 with Dion Phaneuf's dumb face on the cover--back when he was still a Flame.

# 50 StraightEdge @ 06/26/15 12:56 AM

STILL no love for the Rangers. Not even surprised anymore, the covers are always just repetitive garbage.

# 51 ocat @ 06/26/15 04:23 AM

Makes the UFC cover look good. Can't believe someone would of got paid to come up with that thing

# 52 Kolbe31 @ 06/26/15 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brandon27


	I don't really understand how their cover decision "hasn't worked out too great" It's not like the cover is going to have a negative effect on sales. Honestly, if anyone cites the cover as their reason for not buying the game, if I'm EA, I'm not particularly sure I'd even care about that person, or group of persons as a customer. It's... it's just crazy. It's going to work out just fine for them. It's not going to make anyone not buy the game. If anything, it might interest more people in the game who are hawks fans, or Chicago area residents who might not care much about hockey, but are swept up in the excitement the team provides. I think the picture looks goofy, but really. I don't care what's on the cover of the game. I care whats IN the game.

Well, it hasn't worked out great in the sense that the vast majority of people are talking about it negatively. Will it effect sales? Maybe, maybe not. I've read a few comments on Twitter, Facebook where people are saying they won't buy the game because of it. Don't get me wrong, it's completely ridiculous to imply you were going to buy a game until you saw the box cover. But these people do exist, and they're mad. I wouldn't imagine EA is targeting this audience, but after last year's debacle, most of their customers have a pretty short fuse.

# 53 bwiggy33 @ 06/26/15 02:41 PM

If gameplay ever gets released I have a sneaky suspicion that the cover won't be talked about again. I think the lack of actual gameplay footage makes this cover thing such a big deal for people. Once people see the revamped goalies, neutral zone pressure, better player and team separation, and better collision detection, this cover thing will be long forgotten.

# 54 Sheba2011 @ 06/29/15 11:21 AM

I can honestly say I spend about 12 second each year looking at the cover, after that I rip the game open and want to play it. A cover never has or will affect my decision to buy a game and frankly these are the best choices for it. All sports games should put the champions on the cover.

# 55 THESHAMISASHAME @ 07/14/15 12:39 AM

Great cover of the champs and did you notice the playoff beard tie ins ! I cannot wait for this game and playoff beards and the in depth atmosphere looks even better for NHL 16 ~! Its in the game !

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