The Carolina Hurricanes' Eric Staal has been chosen by EA to be the cover boy for the latest edition of their popular videogame hockey franchise, NHL 08.



"I am a huge fan of the NHL franchise and played NHL 07 fanatically," says Staal. "I am honored to be named to the EA SPORTS family and the NHL 08 team."



At just 23 years of age, Staal has become one of Canada's brightest young stars.



According to Publicist Jen Riley, "Staal not only represents a true Canadian hockey player but he loves NHL 07, so he was obvious choice for us."


Staal notched 75 goals over the last two seasons, with 100 points in 2006 alone.



Staal also represented his team at the 2007 NHL All-Star game, and was a key part of the Hurricanes' success during their 2006 playoff run.



The hockey tradition in the Staal family runs deep, as his brothers Marc and Jordan were also as first round picks in the NHL. His youngest brother Jared is a first round pick in the Ontario Hockey League.



Eric even got a chance to play with his brother Jordan at the 2007 Canadian IIHF World Championship team.



"We love having players who demonstrate Canadian patriotism so it was great to see him play with Jordan," says Riley. "The game was made in Canada and is the #1-selling hockey game"




Staal joins many NHL All-Stars on the long list of athletes picked to grace the cover of the NHL series of video games:



NHL Franchise

Cover Athlete

NHL 08

Eric Staal

NHL 07

Alexander Ovechkin

NHL 06

Vincent Lecavalier

NHL 2005

Marcus Naslund

NHL 2004

Joe Sakic

NHL 2003

Jarome Iginla

NHL 2002

Mario Lemieux

NHL 2001

Owen Nolan

NHL 2000

Chris Pronger

NHL 99

Eric Lindros

NHL 98

Peter Forsberg

NHL 97*

John Vanbiesbrouck


*NHL 97 was the first iteration of the franchise to feature single cover athletes.



This year's update to the series, NHL 08 will feature the Skill Stick System which EA says will allow gamers to more easily control the puck.



"We're innovating on our skill stick and fine tuning," says Riley. "Now you can beat the goalie as well as defenders on the a 1 on 1 rush"



"We've fined tuned it. Your shooting and your abilty to blow by defenders will be increased considerably."



Also for the first time, EA has acquired the AHL license, including all 29 AHL teams. Players will be able to play develop talent through the AHL, and call up their prospects to play in the big leagues.




NHL 08 will be released this fall on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Playstation 2 and PC platforms.

What about Sidney Crosby? I think it's also a matter of money, and how much they are willing to pay.

GSA