Subban, Karlsson and Kessel Battle for EA Sports NHL 15 Cover

Voting for EA Sports’ NHL 15 cover begins today as fans will decide which superstar will carry the popular video game’s brand this year.

The list of finalists include Montreal Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Phil Kessel and Ottawa Senators defenceman Erik Karlsson. Each player will be matched with another and fans’ voting will decide who advances in a bracket format.

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Subban and Kessel are matched together, Karlsson is against Patrice Bergeron, Logan Couture is against Drew Doughty, and Matt Duchene is paired with T.J. Oshie. Fans can vote for the player of their choice on NHL.com or by posting their player’s hashtag on Twitter or Instagram. The first round of voting ends May 18.

The winner will be announced during the NHL player awards in Las Vegas on June 24.

This year’s edition of the popular game promises improvements to game physics and facial graphics and also features a very NBC feel. NHL 15 (trailer) will have NBC announcers Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick and Eddie Olczyk in the broadcast booth while TSN’s Ray Ferraro provides commentary from ice level. The game is also said to take a major step with the atmosphere and graphics of each arena to go along with an NBC Game Day Presentation.

“Take in the emotion of every play as you immerse yourself in authentic arenas across the National Hockey League,” EA Sports said in a press release. “You’ll play in front of a full house of fans created with 9,000 dynamic and individual crowd models, the most ever in a sports videogame.”

Last year, veteran New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur edged out Sergei Bobrovsky in the finals. None of this year’s eight finalists have ever been featured on the game’s cover.

NHL 15 is expected to be released in early fall for PlayStation and Xbox systems.